The 49ers finally made the decision this week to bring their $19 million quarterback off the bench … provided, of course, that Colin Kaepernick agrees to tweak his contract to eliminate almost $26 million in future injury protection.
This highlights a huge problem with NFL contracts and displays the leverage teams hold over players. Unless changes are made, the issue will only continue to get worse.
PHOTOS: What happens when sports meet politics
We all know nothing is inherently guaranteed to players in the NFL beyond the signing bonuses they receive with a new contract. Any other future guarantees are negotiated at the bargaining table. As soon as the contract is signed, the numbers are quickly leaked to the biggest members of the press, painting an incredible picture for the player.
The reports are filled with hyperbole; phrases like “the largest guarantee ever given to a player” thrown around like candy. Such was the case with Kaepernick, who signed an extension back in 2014 that contained a whopping $61 million in guaranteed salary.
But the reality of the contract was far different. Of that $61 million, just $12.9 million was actually guaranteed. The balance of the guarantee was guaranteed only in the event Kaepernick sustained a football injury that prevented him from passing a team physical by April 1 of each year, at which point his salary would become fully guaranteed.
These guarantees are little more than paper guarantees and often only come into play if a player sustains an injury late in a season. It benefitted Kaepernick last season, as he did not have shoulder surgery until late November. He was given a four- to six-month recovery timetable, a period that prevented the 49ers from releasing him before his salary became guaranteed on April 1.
But while Kaepernick may have benefited from his injury policy this past offseason, it seemingly crippled his chances to play football this year. Kaepernick played poorly enough in 2015 that, for the team, putting him on the field in ’16 and risking the loss of $26 million would not be worth it. So the 49ers relegated Kaepernick to the bench.
IMIG: Kaepernick vs. Bills is the Super Bowl of Suck
Colin Kaepernick watches from the 49ers sideline in 2015. (Getty Images)
This is a devastating scenario for a guy like Kaepernick, because the ultimate financial goal for any player should be long-term earnings. Without time on the field, a player can’t compile the body of work that justifies another big contract in the future. We saw this exact situation play out last year with Robert Griffin III, whose injury guarantee in 2016 contributed to the Redskins’ decision to demote Griffin to the scout team. Griffin limped into free agency, just as Kaepernick would.
MORE: Week 6 NFL Power Rankings
But the 49ers are taking it a step further and setting a precedent more teams surely will follow.
They are dangling the carrot of playing time in front of Kaepernick, provided he willingly voids the injury guarantees the team agreed to just two years ago. The 49ers in return will give him the ability to void his contract after the season, which sounds like a noble gesture. But considering they were going to release him anyway, are they really giving him anything?
It’s a no-win situation for Kaepernick. If he doesn’t agree and continues to sit, his stock continues to plummet around the NFL. Going into this season Denver reportedly was willing to trade for him if he reduced his salary from over $15 million a year to $7 million, and his market has probably dropped since then. If Kaepernick does play, he risks getting injured and receiving next to nothing on the open market, probably in the range of $2 million a year.
Kaepernick knows his only chance to earn close to his $16.9 million salary in 2017 is to get on the field and play well enough to make some quarterback-desperate teams take note. It won’t be an easy task, as the 49ers are neither a good team nor committed to Kaepernick.
He should understand this move is as much about the 49ers’ front office trying to win points from their fanbase, which has grown tired of Blaine Gabbert’s poor play and wants to see the more dynamic quarterback on the field. If seriously injured, Kaepernick will get next to nothing outside of $1.7M in protection offered by the CBA, quite the departure from his $26 million guarantee.
MORE: Can your team blame struggles on finances?
The fault in this scenario doesn’t lie with the 49ers, who are playing within rules that were agreed upon. The problem lies in the rules themselves, and the fact that they make it so difficult to actually guarantee contracts.
Pumping up these injury guarantees as something substantial doesn’t advance the cause of the players — it just gives teams an out to continue the same process and make everyone feel good about it, until they find themselves in Kaepernick’s situation.
These are real issues that need to be addressed in the next CBA negotiation. While Kaepernick is front and center of a cause that goes well beyond the NFL, perhaps he also can be the face of an important NFL contractual issue. He can help players avoid being forced to give up their guarantees if they want to play the game.