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Lost in this week’s freeagencystorm was the fact that the Falcons saw three players among the top 25 performance bonus earners in the NFL. That’s a testament to how well these guys played (mostly) and how much (definitely) during a season where the Falcons made the second round of the playoffs.
The top earner was Wes Schweitzer, who went from sixth-round rookie in 2016 to full-time starter at right guard in 2017. The Falcons got a long look at him and have decided to replace him with Brandon Fusco, so the money Wes made this year might be the last performance-based bonus he gets for a while.
Falcons RG Wes Schweitzer received the second-highest amount of performance-based pay in the league this year at $466,065.26, as announced by the NFL today. The former sixth-round pick's base salary for last season was $540,000. https://t.co/uhMgprvW3A
— vaughn mcclure (@vxmcclure23) March 14, 2018
De’Vondre Campbell clocked in on the list with Ricardo Allen, as well, as both played well and played often for an improving Falcons defense. This makes no real difference in cap space, etc., but it’s a nice bonus for guys who played their tails off in a frustrating season.
On the defensive side of the ball, Campbell and Allen are two great examples of how the Falcons have found legitimate starters late in draft classes, which they’ll likely need to do again in the years ahead to stay relevant in an increasingly competitive NFC. May those guys play well enough to pick up extra cash like De’Vondre and Ricardo.