Suspension would be doubly expensive for Aldon Smith

Posted by Michael David Smith on September 12, 2015, 12:06 PM EDT
AP

For now, Raiders pass rusher Aldon Smith is allowed to play on Sunday. But as he faces another DUI charge, he could be suspended. And if he is, it will cost him a lot of money.

Field Yates of ESPN reports that Smith’s deal with Oakland has a base salary of $1.25 million, a $250,000 roster bonus for each game he’s on the 53-man roster, an incentive payment of $1.375 million if he records eight sacks this season, and another $1.375 million if he gets to 10 sacks.

That’s a total maximum value of $8 million, which is a good deal for a guy many teams wouldn’t be willing to touch, given his repeated off-field problems. But the structure of that contract means a suspension would be doubly expensive for him: Not only would he lose one-seventeenth of his salary ($73,529) for any game he’s suspended, but he would also lose the $250,000 roster bonus for any game he’s suspended. So he’d lose $323,529 per game that he can’t play because of suspension.

Missing time would also make Smith less likely to hit those sack totals. Smith has 44 sacks in 50 games in his career, so hitting 10 sacks in 16 games is very doable for him. But if he gets hit with a long suspension he may not reach even the eight-sack incentive.

Smith was suspended for nine games last year, and the NFL usually comes down harder on repeat offenders. So it wouldn’t be surprising to see Smith face a lengthy suspension once the league has concluded its investigation of his most recent arrest. If he is suspended, he’ll pay millions for it.

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42 responses to “Suspension would be doubly expensive for Aldon Smith”

  2. He drove a little drunk, thankfully nobody was hurt. At least he’s not cheating his way to multiple Super Bowl’s and getting away with it. That’s where the real crime is. Goodell should just give him a free pass for botching the Brady debacle. Lol!

  3. Seeing him succeed is important and if he does that on my team it would just be great in so many ways. A franchise that has been in the dumps with a player that has and then dominates together, man… That would be amazing!

  4. Raiders played this one well. Friday afternoon announcement on the West Coast, no formal charges had been filed by police until later.
    Sneak Smith in for a game or two.

  5. If he’s still playing in the final game of the season and sitting on 9 sacks, if I’m (presumably) Alex Smith, I say to my former teammate, “Hey, Aldon, I’ll pull a Favre for $250K.”

  6. The Raiders structured the contract this way in order to protect themselves (everyone knows he’s going to get suspended, just the number of games is up in the air). Smith had absolutely no choice but to accept a contract structured in this manner.

    Looks like he won’t be suspended before the game tomorrow, so at least he will collect some cash before the NFL drops the hammer.

  8. I can’t understand how he isn’t suspended for the year yet.

    This isn’t a first DUI. It’s another one after he just got off of a suspension last year for the same thing.

  9. How in the world did the GM think he needed to pay Smith that much!!?! I would have said league min deal take it or leave it. The last 8 games he’s played he’s had 3 sacks and 4 tackles total. The GM is out of his head handing Smith that much green.

  10. Sounds like the Raiders put together a smart contract for a high-risk, high-reward player. Good for them.

  13. So if he is suspended the Raiders don’t have to pay him anything? Why wouldn’t 31 teams take that chance on Smith? In reading multiple news reports about the incident that got him released from the niners, it seems as if the DA may have grossly overcharged himt the end of the day, NFL policy is to not suspend him here until there is a conviction – which won’t be until after the season, if ever. Might be one heck of a deal for the Raiders.

  14. So TJ Ward is suspended week one for throwing a glass in a bar and this guy can play week one? Goodell justice!

  15. what I love is where are all the raiders haters now talking about how dumb the raiders were giving him all that money (even though its clearly an incentive based salary) it just shows people that the raiders aren’t as dumb as everyone CONSTANTLY makes them out to be ……..low risk HIGH reward…..ill take that anyday on a talent like aldons

  18. Giving Aldon a chance is a Al Davis type of move.

    Giving Aldon a low risk contract is a Reggie type of move.

  20. For the record, Howie Long said on Sirius Radio that it was his understanding that these current charges didn’t have much substance and wouldn’t hold up.

  22. The Raider’s are protected, they have an issue with the minimum cap over time penalty. So when it is brought up that they paid a player some guaranteed money and they didn’t make the team or like Aldon now, they have money they need to spend. So these risks are very small and really not even risks since they come with benefits either way.

    Personally I am not a fan of a team has to lose a player due to public opinion and pressure, but then that player can skip to one of the other 31 teams and things are magically now more ok at their new location. It’s a cheap tactic that needs to have some way for the losing team to be compensated. If you don’t agree with that, then you will when it happens to your team down the line. Smell test fail happening here.

  24. arzcardinals says:
    Sep 12, 2015 12:30 PM
    How in the world did the GM think he needed to pay Smith that much!!?! I would have said league min deal take it or leave it. The last 8 games he’s played he’s had 3 sacks and 4 tackles total. The GM is out of his head handing Smith that much green.

    *****************************************************
    Smith actually took less money to come to Oakland. He larger offers from several other teams.

  25. “If he’s still playing in the final game of the season and sitting on 9 sacks, if I’m (presumably) Alex Smith, I say to my former teammate, “Hey, Aldon, I’ll pull a Favre for $250K.””
    ——————————–

    I’ve seen Alex Smith play, and the only way he could “pull a Favre” is if he sends Aldon a picture of his junk.

  26. “arzcardinals says:
    Sep 12, 2015 12:30 PM
    How in the world did the GM think he needed to pay Smith that much!!?!”

    There’s report that Bucs, Jax, and Rams were also interested in signing him. Raiders had the advantage that Aldon wanted to stay in CA, and Reggie has over $20 million cap space that needed to be spent or Raiders get penalized later if the money is not spent.

  27. My understanding is that the guy was backing his car out of the parking space and bumped another, albeit expensive car. He NEVER left the parking lot in the car, but walked away on foot. It has never been expained where he went to, but he left his car there, so he did NOT try to escape if his car was let there. The owner of the car called the police. When Aldon came back, the police were there waiting for him, and wanted him to do a field sobriety test BECAUSE they knew he was Aldon Smith (you have to understand the police in the Penninsular think and behave like they are in the Deep South, which explains why the 49er players who live in Santa Clara County have 54 arrests in the Harbaugh era and Raider players across the Bay have about three in the same period). Aldon, of course, said “I’m not driving and I ain’t doing no DUI test”. So, he was arrested, charged with hit and run, charged with DUI based on the refusal, and VANDALISM, which REQUIRES that he hit the other car INTENTIONALLY (it’s not vandalism to splash some paint on your neighbor’s wall while painting yours, but it is vandalism to scribble “Kilroy was here” on his wall. To think that a man, let alone a multimillionaire prominent public figure would lose his job and livelihood over the above facts is a testament to the times we live in.

  28. Field Yates of ESPN reports that Smith’s deal with Oakland has a base salary of $1.25 million, a $250,000 roster bonus for each game he’s on the 53-man roster, an incentive payment of $1.375 million if he records eight sacks this season, and another $1.375 million if he gets to 10 sacks.

    Reg, you are beautiful baby. All this and $600k to take the physical??

    Oakland Raiders: Commitment to Drunks and Convicts.

  31. As a frustrated fan, I’ve been pretty hard on McKenzie but I have to give him major kudos on bringing in a highly productive defensive player like Aldon Smith on a low-risk/high-reward type deal. Aside from the well-structured contract, I’m especially pleased that this acquisition didn’t cost the Raiders a single draft pick.

  34. Brilliant contract and move by Mckenzie. Incentive laden, play for pay for a top pass rusher. The Raiders can stretch out the legal matters pending an appeal. Smith may miss some games this season, but with the contract structure as it is, the Raiders will not be out any extra cash for those missed games.

    Great move! By nature, haters will simply hate (ignorance reigns in their world).

  35. i agree, I hate those terrible members of society who open their car doors and mistakenly hit the car parked next to them….Society would be much better off with these criminals off the street. I am grateful law enforcement, and our tax dollars are well spent having our public district attorney going after individuals who commit these atrocious acts. Money well spent.

    I think we should all have stake outs at neighborhood Costco’s to find these villain’s as well. I wonder if it also “vandalism” when those knuckleheads let their shopping cart get away and it always ends up hitting my car….I’m telling you I am sick and tired of it, It’s about time we do something about it.

  38. jackybadass says:
    Sep 12, 2015 2:25 PM
    That west coast loser could never play in New England
    ——–
    Us “west coasters” will remember the comment when you’re up to your neck in snow drifts again this year – No more sympathy. Come December, you’ll wish you had our year around “loser” summer! More NE arrogance

  39. Carr
    Cooper
    Smith
    MACK
    The Black Hole!

    How the hell are we home dogs to the Bungles? Ive got five bottles of my basement moonshine on the Raiders and I will be laughing Sunday night!!!

  40. To quote your site from last week, “Just the Raiders being the Raiders,” right MDS? Of course, that was for taking a $600,000 flyer on a once-talented RB. Forget the fact that OAK faced financial penalties under the most recent CBA for not reaching the payment floor for the latest three-year salary window, because that would ruin MDS’s patented 3rd-grade quality narrative.

    Aldon is a sad headcase, to be sure, but the Raiders have built in financial protections for themselves. You could author a piece on this aspect of the story, but that would require an intellectual sophistication that might detract from the thousands of stories about #fellategate.

  42. I find it hilarious that everyone still thinks the 49ers play in San Francisco. Calling them “the team across the Bay.” Here’s a quick geography lesson for those of you who are not local: Santa Clara is down the East Bay from Oakland, in the South Bay. It is not across the bay.

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