Offseason programs are getting started in the NFL today, and the Packers are giving their players millions of reasons to attend voluntary workouts.
The two biggest workout bonuses in any NFL contracts this year are the $750,000 bonus in Packers linebacker Za’Darius Smith’s new contract and the $650,000 bonus in Packers linebacker Preston Smith’s new contract, according to Field Yates of ESPN.
By putting such big workout bonuses in player contracts, Packers General Manager Brian Gutekunst is following in the footsteps of his predecessor, Ted Thompson, who regularly put big workout bonuses in players’ contracts.
It makes sense for the Packers in particular because Green Bay, Wisconsin, isn’t exactly America’s hottest spring break destination. It’s probably easier for a team like the Miami Dolphins or Los Angeles Rams to convince players to come to town for voluntary workouts in April than it is for a team located in Green Bay.
NFL players get a standard pay of $175 a day for participating in offseason workouts. For minimum-salary players, that’s a nice enticement -- not to mention that a lot of those minimum-salary players are desperate to take every opportunity they can to impress their teams, as there’s no guarantee they’ll make the roster in the regular season.
But for highly paid veterans who don’t really need the money and know they’re going to make the team, a workout bonus is an inducement to show up even for work that is voluntary.
