Russell Okung joins Broncos after negotiating own contract; got $0 guaranteed at signing

Tom Pelissero

USA TODAY Sports

The deal Russell Okung negotiated himself will take him to Denver.

Okung will sign a five-year contract with the Broncos, a person with knowledge of the decision told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the deal hadn’t been finalized.

Okung, 28, told NFL Media the deal is worth up to $12 million per season. No other details were immediately available on the contract, which is sure to be scrutinized heavily because Okung set himself up as a trailblazer for players who want to do their own deals.

Acting as his own agent, Okung also visited the New York Giants, Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers. The San Francisco 49ers reached out to the 6-foot-5, 310-pound left tackle as well. But Okung opted to sign with the defending Super Bowl champion Broncos, who now are likely to trade their incumbent left tackle, Ryan Clady.

The sixth overall pick in the 2010 draft, Okung spent his first six NFL seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, starting 72 games and winning a Super Bowl after the 2013 season. He’s coming off shoulder surgery.

The details of Russell Okung’s contract with the Denver Broncos make clear he’s following through on his pledge to bet on himself.

The five-year contract Okung negotiated while acting as his own agent – really a one-year, $5 million deal with a four-year, $48 million team option – contains $0 guaranteed at signing, according to details obtained Friday by USA TODAY Sports.

Okung’s 2016 pay includes a $1 million workout bonus, a $2 million roster bonus for one game on the 53-man roster and a $2 million base salary. The former Seattle Seahawks left tackle can earn an extra $3 million in incentives based on playing time ($1.5M for 80% of the snaps, another $1.5M for 90%).

The workout bonus functions like a virtual guarantee, provided the Broncos don’t cut Okung before he’s earned 90% attendance in the offseason program. But if Okung – who is coming off shoulder surgery – has a poor camp, the Broncos would have the option to cut him after paying $1 million. If Okung gets hurt before the regular season, he’d miss the 53-man bonus and make $3 million.

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Agents are likely to seize on those details, and the fact Okung’s decision to forego the maximum 3% agent fee saved him just $150,000 on the $5 million base value of the initial deal (minus whatever fee he paid former agent Jimmy Halsell to serve as his advisor).

But Okung, 28, is hoping the gamble will pay off if he returns well from his injury, hits all the incentives to earn $8 million this year and then either gets the option picked up or lands a comparable deal that puts him among the NFL’s highest-paid offensive linemen.

“It’s a bit intricate, but I thought it was the best deal for me moving forward,” Okung said on a media conference call Thursday. “Denver is the place I want to be for the long haul.”

The Broncos can exercise the option between the fifth day after the Super Bowl and the first day of the 2017 league year. If they do, Okung’s base salaries for 2017 ($2 million) and 2018 ($9.5 million) become fully guaranteed. He’d also get a $1 million option bonus and an $8 million roster bonus would be due next March, making it fully guaranteed for practical purposes as well.

Okung can earn $1.5 million in per-game active roster bonuses in each of the four option years. He has a $2 million roster bonus due in March 2019 and March 2020 that serve as triggers for the last two years, in which his base salaries are $8.5 million and $9 million, respectively.

Follow Tom Pelissero on Twitter @TomPelissero.

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