Analyzing Jonathan Jones' contract extension

A detailed description of the contract extension that the Patriots' slot corner received last week.

Just before last week began, the New England Patriots and cornerback Jonathan Jones agreed to a three-year extension which has him earning an average of $7 million dollars.

To understand the financial implications of his contract, here is a description of his contract by The Boston Globe's Ben Volin:

Patriots CB Jonathan Jones’ new contract is a 4-year deal worth $24m and $12m fully guaranteed over the first two seasons. Comes with an $8.075m signing bonus.

Got a nice raise from $3.1m to $8.8m this year. And it lowered his cap number from $3.1m to $2.7m

— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) September 12, 2019

Jones also has $800k in per-game roster bonus from 20-22. His cash by year and cap numbers:

2019: $8.8m, $2.75m
2020: $4m, $6.02m
2021: $5.1m, $7.12m
2022: $6.2m, $8.22m

Pretty strong deal for the former UDFA. Patriots see him in their plans for at least 2-3 more years

— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) September 12, 2019

New England has put a serious investment into their secondary, which has paid off, as they now have one of the best in the NFL. 

Locking up Jones through 2022 ensures that the core of their cornerback group is secured for the foreseeable future, with Stephon Gilmore locked up for another three years and JC Jackson in the second year of his rookie contract.