If you were wondering if cornerback Keisean Nixon’s newly signed three-year contract assures him playing time on the defensive side of the ball, his contract details give us the answer.
According to cap analyst Ken Ingalls, Nixon will receive $8.325 million in cash for just the 2024 year in part due to a $6.5 million signing bonus. To say the least, the Green Bay Packers seem to have Nixon in their plans moving forward.
To put Nixon’s cash flow into perspective, he will rank eighth on the team in total cash earned this season. The only players receiving more money than him will be free agent additions Xavier McKinney and Josh Jacobs along with returning starters Kenny Clark, Jaire Alexander, Jordan Love, Preston Smith, Elgton Jenkins and Rashan Gary, per Spotrac. So yes, go ahead and assume that Nixon is going to be the team’s starting slot for at least the 2024 season. Last year, Nixon ranked second in the NFL in snaps played in the slot defensively.
In 2025, Nixon’s dead cap will be $4.333 million meaning that the Packers will only be able to save around $2.5 million if they choose to release him. Functionally, the cornerback’s contract amounts to a two-year, $13 million deal that gives the team a $5 million option in 2026.
Ingalls also reported the contract details for running back AJ Dillon, another player who re-signed with Green Bay in free agency. Per the stipulations of the four-year qualifying contract that Dillon signed, he was allowed to earn up to $2.742 million in 2024. Dillon hit that number exactly, as he’s set to make a $2.575 million base salary with a $167,500 signing bonus. He will only count $1.29 million against the cap, though, as the four-year qualifying contract allows the Packers to pay him an uncapped $1.45 million. You can’t say that Green Bay is cheaping out here, as they hit the maximum amount allotted by the NFL via this cap mechanism.
Dillon will still need to earn his roster spot, though, as the only dead money that would count upon his release is that small signing bonus. From the Packers’ perspective, having Dillon under contract gives them options going into the draft, but it shouldn’t change any plans to add youth at the position in April.
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