NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement

Article 13
Salary Cap Accounting Rules

Section 6(b)(i)(2)
Valuation of Player Contracts - “Deion Rule.”

Notwithstanding any provision in a Player Contract to the contrary or when such payments are actually made, the following rules shall apply in determining the amount of a player’s Salary that is to be included in Team Salary in a particular League Year for purposes of the Salary Cap:

(b)(i)(2)“Deion Rule.”.

For any multiyear Player Contract that extends into any year beyond the expiration of the express term of this Agreement, if (1) the sum of the player’s Paragraph 5 Salary, roster bonuses that are based upon the player making any of the Club’s roster categories without limitation, and reporting bonuses during all League Years of the contract within the express term of this Agreement (but, if there are fewer than three such remaining League Years, during the first three years of the contract) is in the aggregate less than (2) the portion of the contract’s signing bonus that would be allocated to those years if the signing bonus were prorated equally over the term of the contract, then: the difference between the amounts calculated pursuant to (2) and (1) of this sentence, up to 50% of the portion of the signing bonus that would otherwise be allocated to the years after expiration of the express term of this Agreement (the “Difference”), shall be deducted in equal portions from those years and reallocated in equal portions over the League Years of the contract within the express term of this Agreement (or, if there are fewer than three such League Years, within the first three years of the contract). For purposes of this Subsection only, a renegotiation shall be treated as if it is an entirely new Player Contract. The rule in this Subsection shall not apply to a Rookie Contract.