Antoine Winfield and Nnamdi Asomugha have joined the NFC West recently as high-profile veteran cornerbacks.
The one-year contracts they signed show the Seattle Seahawks are betting bigger on Winfield than the San Francisco 49ers are betting on Asomugha.
That makes sense given that Winfield, by all accounts, has played at a higher level recently.
Asomugha is getting no guaranteed money. He can receive $1 million in base salary, plus a $25,000 workout bonus, plus a $225,000 bonus if he remains on the 53-man roster for the first game of the regular season (at which point the $1 million salary would become guaranteed). Asomugha can also earn $6,250 for every game he's on the roster, plus another $425,000 in incentives tied to playing time and reaching the postseason.
Asomugha can earn as much as $1.775 million, but he gets nothing more than that workout bonus if the team releases him before the season.
The contract details for Winfield, posted by Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com, show the former Minnesota Vikings corner fared better than I would have expected given his age (nearly 36) and a soft market.
Winfield can earn as much as $3 million, as initially reported. The breakdown, according to Pelissero, includes a $500,000 signing bonus. Winfield has a $1 million base salary, half of which is guaranteed. He also earns $31,250 in additional bonus money for every game he is active, up to $500,000.
So, if Winfield plays all 16 games, he'll come away with at least $2 million. He can earn an additional $1 million in performance-based incentives. His deal includes $1 million in guarantees, enough to indicate Seattle has set aside a roster spot for him.
The bottom line: Winfield is clearly the Seahawks' slot corner, while Asomugha has to prove himself before landing a spot in the rotation.