Bengals: Orlando Brown Jr. contract reveals unexpected details
Initial reports didn’t fully encapsulate Brown’s four-year deal with the Cincinnati Bengals.
The details of Orlando Brown Jr.'s contract with the Cincinnati Bengals are in, and they differ compared to what was initially reported.
Brown is still set to get paid $64 million over the course of the next four years with about half of that in up-front cash, but that's the only true guaranteed portion of the contract.
While Brown reportedly signed up for approximately $43.5 million in full guarantees, the left tackle's contract doesn't include any guaranteed base salaries. His full guaranteed total is the $31.1 million signing bonus… if it even is a signing bonus.
Some reports have Brown earning that $31M as a prorated roster bonus instead of a signing bonus. Prorated roster bonuses are rarer compared to the alternative, and if it does end up being the case, then the 50% down rule will trigger and impact hits in 2023 and 2024.
For now, here's a look at how Brown's deal will play out in Cincinnati:
| Year | Base Salary | Prorated Bonus | Roster Bonus | Per Game Roster Bonus | Workout Bonus | Salary Cap Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023 | $1,500,000 | $7,750,000 | $0 | $748,000 | $375,000 | $10,398,000 |
2024 | $4,500,000 | $7,750,000 | $3,000,000 | $748,000 | $375,000 | $16,398,000 |
2025 | $6,400,000 | $7,750,000 | $0 | $748,000 | $375,000 | $15,298,000 |
2026 | $13,100,000 | $7,750,000 | $0 | $748,000 | $375,000 | $21,998,000 |
Over The Cap
Brown's average annual value of $16.023 million isn't truly reflected from a cap perspective until the fourth year of the deal, when the Bengals can exit the contract and save $14.223 million in cap space. From a three-year outlook, Brown will accrue almost $50 million in cash, but his average cap hit comes out to approximately $14 million per year thanks to a low cap number this season.
As listed in the table above, Brown can earn up to $748,000 in per game roster bonuses and $375,000 in workout bonuses per year, and will be due a $3 million roster bonus shortly after the 2024 new league year.
While this deal doesn't completely break from the Bengals' normal tendencies of not guaranteeing money beyond the first year of the deal, Brown's signing/roster bonus of $31 million is still notably abnormal for the franchise, and it helped them secure a left tackle of the future.
