Details emerge on JuJu Smith-Schuster's contract incentives with Patriots

BOSTON -- When the headline hit that JuJu Smith-Schuster signed a three-year, $33 million deal, everyone knew that there'd be a few details to sort out in that contract.

Now, some of those details are out, with ESPN's Mike Reiss reporting on the incentives tied into Smith-Schuster's deal in New England.

According to Reiss, Smith-Schuster can earn an extra $750,000 in 2023 if he hits the 950 receiving yard mark. He can earn another $750,000 on top of that -- for a total of $1.5 million -- if he hits 1,100 receiving yards.

In the second and third years of the deal, Smith-Schuster gets $1 million if he hits 800 receiving yards, another $1 million if he hits 950 receiving yards, and another $1 million if he hits 1,100 receiving yards.

For perspective, Smith-Schuster has only topped 950 yards once in his career, and that was back in 2018, when he had 1,426 receiving yards for the Steelers. 

But he has hit 800 receiving yards in four of his six NFL seasons, including last year, when he had 933 yards for the Chiefs.

Yet because Smith-Schuster didn't hit 950 yards last season, his incentives for 2023 are considered Not Likely To Be Earned and thus will not count against the Patriots' salary cap in 2023.

Smith-Schuster played last season on an incentive-laden deal, which led to him making $1 million for the Chiefs winning the Super Bowl. That $1 million bonus become possible because he had caught more than 60 passes and recorded more than 900 receiving yards, thus triggering the bonus opportunity.