NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement

Article 13
Salary Cap Accounting Rules

Section 7(b)
30% Rules

(b)

Any amount which a Club may pay to a player to buy out a right the player has or may have to terminate one or more contract years shall be treated as signing bonus at the time the buyout is exercised by the Club, and prorated at that time over the remaining term of the contract, including the current League Year, if the right to terminate and/or the right to buyout is based upon one or more incentives that are not “likely to be earned.” Such a buyout amount shall not be included in any calculation for purposes of the 30% Rule, set forth above. (The parties acknowledge a disagreement as to the treatment of allocated signing bonus and buyout payments when a player’s right to terminate one or more contract years and/or the Club’s right to buyout is based upon one or more incentives that are “likely to be earned,” and not upon any incentives that are not “likely to be earned.” These issues are expressly left open. Except to enforce the terms of this Subsection (b), the terms of this Subsection may not be referred to or used by any of the parties in any proceeding, or otherwise, and the parties otherwise reserve all their rights with respect to the subject of this parenthetical.).