Contract Proration Ratios
This table explores the balance between the two primary methods teams use to structure guaranteed money in non-rookie contracts: signing bonuses that are prorated over the length of the contract to a maximum of five years; and guaranteed base salaries that are not prorated but kept within a particular year. The contracts included are those agreed upon by each current general manager or top executive during his or her tenure with the team.
Teams with a higher proration ratio rely heavier on signing bonuses that offer more salary cap room in the present but contain the potential for higher dead money in the future. Teams with a lower proration ratio incur higher cap charges at the beginning of the contract but gain more flexibility to alter or terminate the contract in later years.
For this table, a top executive's tenure is considered to begin in the first year he or she is a top executive at the start of that respective league year. Those that have yet to achieve this will not show on this table until that moment occurs.
Proration Ratio League Average: -4.65
Proration Ratio League Median: 1.26
| Team | Top Executive | Tenure | Total Guarantees | Signing Bonuses | Salary Guarantees | Proration Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | John Schneider | 2010 | $281,916,367 | $257,537,580 | $24,378,787 | 10.56 | |
| Rams | Les Snead | 2012 | $239,609,758 | $209,318,095 | $30,291,663 | 6.91 | |
| Steelers | Omar Khan | 2022 | $159,566,614 | $127,973,088 | $31,593,526 | 4.05 | |
| Bengals | Mike Brown | 1991 | $279,387,633 | $215,943,012 | $63,444,621 | 3.40 | |
| Ravens | Eric DeCosta | 2019 | $376,612,759 | $274,719,031 | $101,893,728 | 2.70 | |
| Titans | Ran Carthon | 2023 | $34,652,500 | $23,982,500 | $10,670,000 | 2.25 | |
| 49ers | John Lynch | 2017 | $429,805,908 | $296,855,429 | $132,950,479 | 2.23 | |
| Commanders | Ron Rivera | 2020 | $323,542,019 | $223,284,732 | $100,257,287 | 2.23 | |
| Browns | Andrew Berry | 2020 | $576,267,272 | $370,266,948 | $206,000,324 | 1.80 | |
| Bills | Brandon Beane | 2018 | $447,097,977 | $279,318,453 | $167,779,524 | 1.66 | |
| Chargers | Tom Telesco | 2013 | $483,956,335 | $301,260,799 | $182,695,536 | 1.65 | |
| Cardinals | Monti Ossenfort | 2023 | $22,751,250 | $13,911,250 | $8,840,000 | 1.57 | |
| Patriots | Bill Belichick | 2000 | $287,471,930 | $168,599,288 | $118,872,642 | 1.42 | |
| Lions | Brad Holmes | 2021 | $219,850,993 | $128,229,032 | $91,621,961 | 1.40 | |
| Cowboys | Jerry Jones | 1994 | $339,254,330 | $196,853,236 | $142,401,094 | 1.38 | |
| Texans | Nick Caserio | 2021 | $208,489,016 | $118,455,148 | $90,033,868 | 1.32 | |
| Broncos | George Paton | 2021 | $412,709,205 | $229,797,478 | $182,911,727 | 1.26 | |
| Falcons | Terry Fontenot | 2021 | $324,844,223 | $178,278,860 | $146,565,363 | 1.22 | |
| Vikings | Kwesi Adofo-Mensah | 2022 | $162,476,073 | $84,852,580 | $77,623,493 | 1.09 | |
| Panthers | Scott Fitterer | 2021 | $264,439,503 | $137,450,156 | $126,989,347 | 1.08 | |
| Dolphins | Chris Grier | 2019 | $479,388,660 | $242,671,800 | $236,716,860 | 1.03 | |
| Jaguars | Trent Baalke | 2022 | $261,396,754 | $131,110,050 | $130,286,704 | 1.01 | |
| Giants | Joe Schoen | 2022 | $225,176,397 | $110,810,028 | $114,366,369 | 0.97 | |
| Saints | Mickey Loomis | 2001 | $400,905,855 | $194,361,032 | $206,544,823 | 0.94 | |
| Jets | Joe Douglas | 2020 | $390,424,972 | $178,846,684 | $211,578,288 | 0.85 | |
| Colts | Chris Ballard | 2017 | $294,468,747 | $123,375,676 | $171,093,071 | 0.72 | |
| Raiders | Dave Ziegler | 2022 | $187,491,852 | $74,569,802 | $112,922,050 | 0.66 | |
| Bears | Ryan Poles | 2022 | $163,480,213 | $64,205,704 | $99,274,509 | 0.65 | |
| Chiefs | Brett Veach | 2018 | $323,942,580 | $114,654,388 | $209,288,192 | 0.55 | |
| Buccaneers | Jason Licht | 2014 | $301,484,148 | $49,681,752 | $251,802,396 | 0.20 | |
| Eagles | Howie Roseman | 2010 | $331,883,447 | $343,792,396 | ($11,908,949) | -28.87 | |
| Packers | Brian Gutekunst | 2018 | $352,482,678 | $354,467,756 | ($1,985,078) | -178.57 |