Contract details for Bills’ 2023 signing OG Connor McGovern

McGovern’s deal includes a potential out after one season and as well as a void year

New Buffalo Bills guard Connor McGovern officially inked his three-year, $22.35 million deal and took the podium in his introductory press conference with media on Thursday. Now we can dive into the full contract details and see if general manager Brandon Beane applied some of his wizardly skills.

Here are the full contract details, courtesy of Spotrac:

McGovern gets an $8 million signing bonus on top of his $1.9 million base salary in 2023. With a $100K workout bonus added on, the total guarantees and cash in the first year round out to a whopping $10 million. However, he gets a potential out after 2023 and could walk away after just a one-year, $10 million deal that would result in a $6 million dead-cap hit for Buffalo.

His base salary rises to $5.8 million in 2024 and $5.35 million in 2025 with one void year added in 2026. He gets a $1 million roster bonus in 2025 as well, for a cash total of $6.45 million. On top of his annual $100K workout bonus, he has a $250K Pro Bowl incentive, too.

This deal is obviously very front-loaded at $10 million in year one, proving that Buffalo is banking on an impressive season that could pay off in the end. If things go wrong and the Bills were ready to move on from McGovern after just one season, they’d have to do it the day after the 2023 Super Bowl to prevent $1.1 million of his 2024 salary from becoming fully guaranteed.

The Bills have already confirmed that McGovern will be playing left guard, which is a slight head-scratcher considering he played the majority of his snaps with the Dallas Cowboys at right guard, while incumbent right guard Ryan Bates has looked solid in previous opportunities at left guard. Nonetheless, it’s promising to see Beane addressing the offensive line to protect quarterback Josh Allen, and let’s hope this is only the beginning of reconstructing the trenches.

Connor McGovern Yearly Contract Breakdown

2023

Signing bonus: $2 million
Workout bonus: $100K
Base salary: $1.9 million
Cap hit: $4 million
Yearly cash: $10 million

2024

Signing bonus: $2 million
Workout bonus: $100K
Base salary: $5.8 million
Cap hit: $7.9 million
Yearly cash: $5.9 million

2025

Signing bonus: $2 million
Workout bonus: $100K
Roster bonus: $1 million
Base salary: $5.35 million
Cap hit: $8.45 million
Yearly cash: $6.45 million

2026 — Void Year