Giants Free Agency Contract and Salary Cap Update

Whether the Giants' free agency haul turns out to be diamonds in the rough or just another disappointing expedition remains to be seen. But what hasn't been disappointing is in the team's shift in its management of the salary cap.

The Giants took advantage of the fact that running back Saquon Barkley and quarterback Daniel Jones are still on their rookie deals. As such, they front-loaded their free-agent contracts so far to where the bulk of the money owed is owed in the first year or two of the deals making a quicker "escape" from the contracts plausible with zero dead money.

In other words, whereas in the past the Giants would give free agents signing bonuses that could be prorated over the life of a contract (up to five years), they have switched to roster bonuses which are typically paid out no more than five days after the start of the new league year (March 18 for this year) and which only count against the current year.

This approach gives teams more flexibility as to when they can get out of a contract. For example, if Player A has a roster bonus due by the fifth day of the new league year in 2020 and 2021 so long as the team terminates the deal before the annual roster bonus is due, they'll avoid an accelerated dead money charge.

So after being in the top-5 league-wide the last two years in dead money, a factor that has hamstrung the team, the Giants have finally adjusted their thinking. They'll still have dead money--all teams will. But the days of that dead money taking a large bite out of their overall cap are over.

With all that said, let's break down the contracts they've given out to their players. A source has confirmed all figures, as first reported by Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.

ILB Blake Martinez

As noted in this breakdown:

The total value of the Martinez deal is three years, $30.75 million, with $19 million guaranteed. He'll get a $4 million fully-guaranteed base salary and a $10 million roster bonus (due March 23 of this year) for a $14 million cap hit.

He'll then get base salaries of $8.125 million (fully guaranteed) in 2021 and $8.425 million in 2022, the final year of the deal. Although Martinez has roughly a $14 million cap hit for 2020, the deal itself averages out to a little more than $10 million per season.

Martinez's deal is a two-year contract with an option for a third year, given that only his 2021 base salary is fully guaranteed. But his cap hit will be under $8.5 million, a somewhat reasonable figure should the Giants be able to add a linebacker in the draft (Isaiah Simmons or Zack Baun).

ILB David Mayo

Mayo's three-year, $8.4 million contract breaks down as follows: $1.5 million base salary in 2020, which is fully guaranteed plus a $2 million roster bonus due on March 18 (this equals the reported $3.5 million guaranteed that was reported).

He'll then get base salaries of $2.25 million and $2.5 million in 2021 and 2022, respectively, and he has a play-time incentive of up to $500,000 for 2020 and 2021.

Mayo's contract is more of a one-year deal, given the lack of guaranteed money beyond 2020. And the play-time incentive, which usually kicks in if the player is on the field for the defense in a set percentage of the season's snaps, suggests that Mayo will be a depth player rather than a starter.

TE Levine Toilolo

Toilolo's deal is for two years, $6.2 million, with $3.25 million guaranteed. Like Mayo's contract, his 2020 base salary ($1.225 million) is fully guaranteed, and he'll also be getting a $2 million roster bonus (but on March 23, 2020). His 2021 base salary is $2.925 million, none of which is guaranteed.

The Giants can terminate the deal after this year if they should pick up another young tight end via the draft or post-draft free agency period.

WR Cody Core

The Giants special teams ace received a two-year deal worth $4 million with $1 million guaranteed, the $1 million guarantees being a roster bonus due March 23. His first-year cap hit will be $1.95 million (base salary of $950,000 plus the roster bonus).

Core can earn up to $350,000 per year in catch incentives, the number of catches required to trigger that incentive not known. He also has a $500,000 roster bonus due in 2021 on the third day of that league year to go along with a $1.45 million base salary, so his deal can be terminated after this season if the Giants don't see him as part of their plans beyond 2020.

CB James Bradberry

Bradberry received the richest of the contracts given out by the Giants in free agency, a three-year, $45 million deal with $31.8 million guaranteed. His first two base salaries ($3.9 million in 2020 and $13.9 million in 2021) are fully guaranteed. He's also getting a $12 million roster bonus on March 23 of this year.

In 2022, he's due a $13.4 million base salary, of which $2 million is guaranteed for injury at signing, but if he's on the roster the first day of the 2022 league year, his full base salary will be guaranteed.

Bradberry's deal also includes $500,000 in incentives, including an annual Pro Bowl bonus. Overall his deal is a two-year contract.

So Where Does that Leave the Giants in Terms of Cap Space?

The cap situation is fluid, meaning it's continually changing. In these somewhat unprecedented times where there could be delays in announcing contracts as being signed (due to travel restrictions brought on by COVID-19 concerns), a team's actual cap space can fluctuate depending on whether it's willing to accept the physical results by a doctor outside of its employ.

For planning purposes, teams will presumably treat the new contracts like checks that haven't yet been cashed. Per Over the Cap, the Giants' estimated cap space is down to $16,946,292, an amount that also includes the franchise tag for defensive lineman Leonard Williams and the second-round RFA tender for kicker Aldrick Rosas.

Of that money, the Giants still need to hold about $10 million or so of functional space in reserve for its 10-member draft pick (note: that total will fluctuate based on what the team does with its first-round pick and if it trades away some of those picks).

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