With help of loophole, Giants create salary cap space
by Mike Garafolo /The Star-Ledger
Tuesday January 06, 2009, 9:46 AM


Eli Manning, Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward, Amani Toomer, and James Butler, listen up: There's suddenly more money for the Giants to potentially throw your way in 2009.

And you can thank backup tight end Darcy Johnson for that.

According to NFLPA records, the Giants recently exercised a common practice used by many teams to create more salary-cap room for the upcoming season. Late last month, the team took most of the room on its cap for this season and converted it into a $7.2-million "likely to be earned bonus" for Johnson. At least, that's what its called; the bonus isn't really expected to be earned. And when it's not earned, it becomes a credit on the following season's salary cap.

In this case, Johnson's bonus was for special-teams participation. It's unclear how much Johnson had to participate to earn the bonus, though someone informed of the recently added clause in his contract said he did not reach it. The person requested anonymity because the terms of the deal were not to be discussed publicly.

The Giants now get to add $7.2 million to their salary cap next season. The '09 cap is scheduled to be at least $123 million, which means the Giants' cap will be at least $130.2 million.

The added money could be used to re-sign their impending free agents (Jacobs, Ward, Toomer and Butler are at the top of that list) or to give Manning a new contract. Manning is signed through next season and his contract is expected to be extended at some point.

2. I think you can make book on Plaxico Burress playing elsewhere in 2009, assuming he's not in jail. (And that may not be the best assumption right now.) In fact, I expect the Giants to either de-activate him the rest of the season or place him on the non-football injury list for the rest of the year, effectively ending his career with the New York Giants. Amazing, amazing story.

Giants GM Jerry Reese negotiated a great contract to lock up Burress before the season, making it about as safe a deal as he could, with miniscule guarantees. The Giants can cut or trade Burress after the season and simply eliminate $23 million of the $27-million-in-new-money deal he signed with the Giants. In effect, as I said on NBC last night, when I examine the deal, I see the contract totally on the come. And the first big test of this contract will come on Dec. 10, when Burress is due $1 million from the original and only guaranteed money in the deal, the third installment of a $4.325-million signing bonus when he signed. Let me break down all of the non-guaranteed money in the Burress deal that makes it absolutely simple for the Giants to cut the cord with him after the season:

• Non-guaranteed base salaries: $11.5 million ($1 million in 2009, $3.5 million in 2010, $3.5 million in 2011, $3.5 million in 2012).

• Non-guaranteed one-time bonus to be paid early in the '09 off-season: $2 million.

• Non-guaranteed roster bonuses: $3.5 million ($500,000 in '09, $1 million in 2010, $1 million in 2011, $1 million in 2012).

• Non-guaranteed escalators, payable only on high performance: $5 million ($1.25 million in '09, '10, '11, '12.) He has not reached his escalators yet that would kick in for 2009.

• Non-guaranteed workout bonuses: $1.3 million ($325,000 in '09, '10, '11, '12).

Burress also has a clause in his contract that could come into play and cost him $400,000 this year. For every game he's ineligible to play in because of non-injury reasons, he doesn't earn a $100,000 per game roster bonus.

Awfully sad. "Trouble just follows him,'' said Bucs cornerback Ronde Barber. No one over the weekend was arguing.

3. I think there's one more thing regarding Burress, and it's good news for Amani Toomer: The Giants are $20 million under the 2009 cap right now, and Toomer, whose contract is up at the end of this year, wants to return in 2009. This makes his chance much better to do so. The five Giant receivers under contract for next year (Steve Smith , Sinorice Moss, Mario Manningham, Domenik Hixon, David Tyree) are due a combined $3.6-million in 2009. Adding Toomer for $4 million under the cap, and one guy in the draft or free agency, and maybe subtracting Tyree, could well happen. The Giants have plenty of resources to go on without Burress. The big test, obviously, will be seeing if one of these names can turn into the big-play receiver the Giants will obviously have to play without.