Sometimes, the ESPN-on-ESPN crime happens quickly. On other occasions, it takes a while to percolate.
A day after some in-house consternation over the “exclusive” Greg Hardy interview, ESPN’s Mike Reiss has a report that directly conflicts with prior information perpetuated by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Reiss reports that the one-year deal given by the Patriots to defensive lineman Terrance Knighton has a base value of $1.75 million, coming in the form of a $250,000 signing bonus, a salary of $900,000, a per-game roster bonus worth up to $500,000, and a workout bonus of $100,000. He also can earn $300,000 in incentives, pushing the total package north of $2 million.
Last week, however, Schefter called it a one-year, $4.5 million deal. Which is more than twice the maximum amount of the actual deal.
So how does this happen? Agents routinely give out false or embellished information regarding contract value. In most cases, however, the exaggeration comes only from an overstatement of the “guaranteed” money in the deal, with the reporter who is grateful to get the scoop passing the information along without explaining how much is truly guaranteed at signing -- and usually without even pointing out that there’s a real difference between money that is guaranteed for injury only (and thus not guaranteed) and money that is truly, fully, and completely guaranteed.
Rarely is the total value of a contract so grossly and inaccurately overstated. But that’s apparently what happened here, if the report from Reiss is accurate.
UPDATE 12:27 p.m. ET: Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald has corroborated the report from Reiss. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, however, reports that the deal includes another $2.5 million in incentives based on playing time and making it to the Pro Bowl. If that twist is accurate, it means that while it’s not a one-year, $4.5 million deal, the contract is worth up to $4.5 million if all incentive triggers are met. Regardless, the two ESPN reports remain in clear conflict.
