After the Patriots acquired receiver Chris Hogan and tight end Martellus Bennett in March, it became clear that, unless receiver Danny Amendola agreed to take less money, he’d be gone.
He has indeed taken less. As it turns out, a lot less.
Ben Volin of the Boston Globe has the details. Amendola has swapped out a $5 million base salary, $500,000 in per-game roster bonuses, and another $500,000 in incentives for a maximum package this year of $1.6 million.
He gets a fully-guaranteed base salary of $1.25 million, a $100,000 signing bonus, and up to $250,000 in roster bonus. It a dramatic reduction, especially since he had 65 catches for 648 yards and three touchdowns in 2015.
Amendola is still due to make $6.5 million in 2017, if he’s on the team then. Given the value they’ve placed on him for 2016, it’s safe to say that he’ll only be a Patriot in 2017 if he takes a similar pay cut.