Fred Warner & Charvarius Ward’s contract restructures: What does it mean for the 49ers?
Mar 15, 2023, 4:00 PM
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 29: Charvarius Ward #7 and Fred Warner #54 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrate a defensive stop against the Philadelphia Eagles during the third quarter in the NFC Championship Game at Lincoln Financial Field on January 29, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
(Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)
The San Francisco 49ers have had to work some magic with the salary cap this offseason.
Despite having two quarterbacks on rookie deals, the 49ers have a ton of top-level talents on massive deals in 2023. And with defensive player of the year Nick Bosa’s contract extension looming, San Francisco has work to do to keep most of their guys on the roster.
So how have they done it? Simple: Contract restructures.
The 49ers have restructured the contracts of linebacker Fred Warner and cornerback Charvarius Ward this week, creating close to $20 million in cap space. The Red & Gold had to be cap complaint by the start of the new league year Wednesday, doing so with said restructures.
Another #49ers restructure, this time with LB Fred Warner as they save an additional $9.5 million, per @FieldYates.
Charvarius Ward and Warner restructures create a little under $20 million in cap space for Niners.
— Nick Wagoner (@nwagoner) March 15, 2023
How It Works
Warner’s new deal saves the 49ers $9.5 million on the salary cap this season, while Ward’s contract saves about $10 million this season. Both players will still remain with the team for their original length, but with the restructures, each player will be rewarded the majority of their 2023 salaries in a signing bonus. That gives the players their money upfront, while also taking it off of the organization’s books for the year.
The kicker comes down the road, with spiked cap hits in the seasons to follow. For example, Warner will have cap hits of $24.46 million, $26.8 million and $24.35 million after this coming year. San Francisco has also added a void year in 2027, allowing them to stretch out Warner’s money even further. It’s called a “void year” because both sides understand that the contract will be terminated at that point, but will still cost the 49ers a portion of the prorated bonus.
The same can be said for Charvarius Ward’s deal, adding three void years to his deal. With his new deal running through 2024, his cap hits will be $6.4 million, $17.9 million and $12.29 million in the first void year. San Francisco will be able to cut costs after 2025, able to cut ties with Ward’s contract for the final two void years.
While the protocol feels risky down the road, it’s a fairly standard practice in the NFL. And by doing so, the 49ers can capitalize on their current window by signing top-end talent, including defensive tackle Javon Hargrave.
Fred Warner restructure details…
-All but vet min ($1.08m) of $12.9m 2023 base salary converted to signing bonus
-Void year added in 2027 to maximize proration runway
-2023 cap hit reduced fro $18.5m to $9m
-49ers now completely locked into Warner through at least 2024
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) March 15, 2023
Here’s a breakdown of Fred Warner & Charvarius Ward’s new deals, via OverTheCap.com:
Fred Warner
2023
Base salary: $1,080,000
Prorated bonus: $7,369,000
Per-game roster bonus: $500,000
Workout bonus: $100,000
Guaranteed salary: $0
Salary-cap number: $9,049,000
2024
Base salary: $15,300,000
Prorated bonus: $8,569,000
Per-game roster bonus: $500,000
Workout bonus: $100,000
Guaranteed salary: $0
Salary-cap number: $24,469,000
2025
Base salary: $17,650,000
Prorated bonus: $8,569,000
Per-game roster bonus: $500,000
Workout bonus: $100,000
Guaranteed salary: $0
Salary-cap number: $26,819,000
2026
Base salary: $17,650,000
Prorated bonus: $6,105,000
Per-game roster bonus: $500,000
Workout bonus: $100,000
Guaranteed salary: $0
Salary-cap number: $24,355,000
2027
Base salary: Void
Prorated bonus: $2,369,000
Salary-cap number: $2,369,000
Charvarius Ward
2023
Base salary: $1,080,000
Prorated bonus: $4,901,000
Per-game roster bonus: $340,000
Workout bonus: $100,000
Guaranteed salary: $1,080,000
Salary-cap number: $6,421,000
2024
Base salary: $12,560,000
Prorated bonus: $4,901,000
Per-game roster bonus: $340,000
Workout bonus: $100,000
Guaranteed salary: $0
Salary-cap number: $17,901,000
2025
Base salary: Void
Prorated bonus: $4,901,000
Per-game roster bonus: Void
Workout bonus: Void
Guaranteed salary: Void
Salary-cap number: $12,298,000
2026
Base salary: Void
Prorated bonus: $4,901,000
Per-game roster bonus: Void
Workout bonus: Void
Guaranteed salary: Void
Salary-cap number: $0
2027
Base salary: Void
Prorated bonus: $2,496,000
Per-game roster bonus: Void
Workout bonus: Void
Guaranteed salary: Void
Salary-cap number: $0
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