Josh Reynolds was always expected to become a former Detroit Lion in free agency for reasons connected solely to his projected role and what he could possibly garner on the open market.
So it was a little surprise when general manager Brad Holmes mentioned him as part of the “Plan A” for free agency at the league meetings this week. When combined with Dan Campbell’s statements at the league meetings, Reynolds’ re-signing became more likely.
Reynolds signed a contract with the Denver Broncos the next day, whether by coincidence or not. The transaction was believed to be for “up to” $14 million over two years. The devil of how he could collect up to $14 million over two years would appear when the specifics
Actual details of Josh Reynolds’ deal with Broncos concretely proves how little Lions valued him
Fitzgerald listed Reynolds’ contract with the Broncos as two years and $9 million. He receives a $2 million signing bonus, and his $2.245 million base salary for 2024 is fully guaranteed. He has $255,000 in total per-game roster incentives this year and $510,000 in total per-game roster bonuses in 2025.
Reynolds played all 17 games for the Lions last season, therefore the full $255,000 in per-game roster incentives is considered “likely to be earned” for salary cap purposes in 2024. His cap hit for the year is $3.5 million.
The Broncos can easily cut Reynolds one year into the contract, freeing about $4.5 million in cap space and incurring a $1 million dead money hit (signing bonus proration) for 2025.
There are no details yet on how (or if) Reynolds would raise “up to” the initially estimated $14 million over two years. However, it is almost certainly performance-based and may not be earned.
According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, the Lions made Reynolds a below-market offer at the start of free agency and then had no communication with him in the following weeks. That revelation revealed that they were not very serious about bringing him back.
But if Reynolds ultimately got a fairly reasonable $4.5 million per year, with a only a firm commitment for one year, what did that early offer look like? Everything else that was done contradicts what Holmes said about Reynolds being a priority. The actual deal he got from Denver reinforces that the Lions were never going to bring him back, no matter the cost.
