The Cincinnati Bengals recently made some polarizing headlines for the way they handled the contract structures on some of their biggest signings in NFL free agency.
Now, they’re doing it again.
Sort of.
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When the Bengals re-signed Joe Flacco to a one-year deal worth $6 million, they apparently stuffed two void years onto the back end of the contract, according to Over the Cap.
So, technically, a three-year deal worth $6 million with two void years.
According to SI’s Jay Morrison, Flacco is a $3.3 million cap hit this year and a $2.7 million cap hit in 2027, a void year. He also has incentives tied to playing time.
So, the Bengals push some of the cap hits to future years on the Flacco deal, but elected not to with Boye Mafe and Bryan Cook.
As to why? The Bengals know Flacco is a year-to-year player. With major investments like Mafe, they want to get the major gamble out of the way early, in case they need to cut ties early.
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Is that a good way to do business? The rest of the NFL, for the most part, doesn’t agree. But the Bengals love their cap flexibility in future years.
And it might be a small consolation prize, but perhaps the structure here on Flacco gives them a little more cash wiggle room when doing an extension with DJ Turner or somebody else over the summer.
This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Bengals did some weird contract stuff again, this time with Joe Flacco