Two weeks ago, we learned that Nick Allegretti, whom some fans had thought to be a cut candidate heading into free agency, instead got a new 2-year contract.
Prior to the extension, Allegretti had only the final year (2026) left on a 3-year deal he had signed in 2024:
I confess that when I heard the news, I initially assumed that 2 years had been added to the only year left on his existing contract. That’s not what happened. Basically, one year was added (2027), or looked at another way, his old contract that had only one year remaining was replaced by a new 2-year deal.
To understand what the Commanders did here, we have to do a little bit of math.
Here’s Allegretti’s new deal:
There are a number of things to notice here:
This was a pay cut for Allegretti dressed up to look like an extension
To evaluate this fully, let’s look at the amount of cash Allegretti would have received for 2026 under his original (2024) contract and compare it to what he will receive if he plays just one season under the new (2026) agreement:
As you can see, if Allegretti is cut after the 2026 season, he will end up making $2m less than he would have if he’d played out the final year of his existing contract, indicating that playing it out was not an option. In effect, the Commanders must have arm-twisted him into accepting a pay cut by threatening to release him.
However, rather than announce it as a pay cut, as happened with Andrew Wylie a year earlier, this was dressed up as an extension or as a new 2-year deal.
A triple win for the Commanders
The reality is that this was a triple-win for the team. In return for letting Allegretti keep his job and tossing in a $2m guarantee, the Commanders saved $2m in cash this season, reduced the ‘26 cap hit by $3.3m, and secured an option on Allegretti’s services for 2027 at a known cost of $3.585m in cash.
A good day’s work by the Washington front office.