Giants Restructure Adoree' Jackson's Contract

General manager Joe Schoen, desperate to find any last bit of salary cap space, kicked the can down the road for yet another player contract. Here's what he did and why he likely chose this particular contract.

Author:
Patricia Traina
Publish date:
Apr 4, 2022 10:13 AM EDT

In this story:

New York Giants

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen continues to be faced with having to unwind the mess that is the Giants current salary cap situation--a situation that, per ESPN's cap data, had the Giants with less than $1 million in cap space thanks to previous missteps.

Schoen's latest move to get the cap back to some semblance of health was to reach an agreement with cornerback Adoree' Jackson to lower his $15,264,706 cap number to approximately $11.76 million.

They converted $8.965 million of Jackson's cap figure to a signing bonus, added a voidable year to his deal (originally scheduled to end in 2023), and tacked on a voidable year to help absorb some of the brunt of the signing bonus.

Based on the reported numbers, the above table shows what the rest of Jackson's original three-year, $39 million contract projects to look like.

Jackson's original cap number for this year was $16.5. He is due $9.5 million guaranteed this year, so his base salary combined with the upfront signing bonus covers that guarantee.

Jackson previously held the fourth-highest cap hit on the team, behind defensive lineman Leonard Williams, cornerback James Bradberry, and receiver Kenny Golladay.

Oct 24, 2021; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants cornerback James Bradberry (24) reacts after an interception against the Carolina Panthers during the first half at MetLife Stadium. — Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The Giants have reportedly been looking to trade Bradberry since the start of the off-season. Schoen apparently doesn't want to give away the 28-year-old cornerback for a song and a dance, especially considering Bradberry is one season removed from a Pro Bowl berth.

Dec 19, 2021; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard (20) carries the ball as New York Giants defensive end Leonard Williams (99) pursues during the second half at MetLife Stadium. — Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

It's unlikely that the Giants approached the 28-year-old Williams, who already has abnormally high cap figures of $27.3 million this year and $26.3 million in 2023, about restructuring, as doing so would have further inflated his already high numbers.

New York Giants wide receiver Kenny Golladay warms up on the field before the game at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021, in East Rutherford. — Danielle Parhizkaran/NorthJersey.com via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Golladay, 29, also has high cap hits exceeding $21 million in each of the remaining years of his contract, including $4.5 million guaranteed in 2023, which would make his contract a tricky one to restructure.

The Giants are estimated to need $12.58 million to sign their rookie class before training camp, so more work still needs to be done to clear additional space.