NFL Free Agency: 8 Players Who Will Get a Huge Pay Raise After This Season
By Keith Myers
Marcell Dareus – Buffalo Bills
2014 Salary: $3,157,814
2015 Status: $8,060,000
Buffalo’s Marcell Dareus has the distinction of being the only defensive player on this list. He is far from the only player deserving, but many of the other defensive players, like J.J. Watt, Patrick Peterson and Richard Sherman, from his draft class have already been locked up to long-term deals.
Dareus’ situation also demonstrates another reason why there aren’t many defensive players on this list. His fifth-year option salary is at a much lower and more-easily palatable than his offensive counterparts. Darius was taken the pick before A.J. Green, and three picks before Julio Jones, but his option-value is almost $2.5 million less.
Dareus deserves a fat new contract as much as anyone else on this list, but there’s less incentive for the Bills to have any initiative to do so. They can wait a year, point to his modest raise for 2015, and then use the franchise tag as leverage the following year.
Dareus will still get paid, he just may have to wait longer than everyone else on this list.