Tyrann Mathieu's comeback into football is almost complete. After getting dismissed from LSU, getting arrested, going through rehab and vowing to change his ways, Mathieu's second chance is well on its way to happening. After impressing in the combine and showing to teams that he is serious about kicking his drug habit, the Arizona Cardinals signed the Honey Badger to a contract. However, just because he put his name on paper, does not mean the Cardinals are ready to trust him yet.
It was first reported that the contract Mathieu would be offered would contain zero guaranteed money. That is normally not the case with contracts, but the Cardinals were looking to protect themselves incase Mathieu turned out to be more risk than reward. Mathieu's agent highly denied that was the case, saying his client would not sign a contract unless there was guaranteed money involved.
Mathieu eventually signed a four-year deal worth $3.052 million. He will receive a $265,000 roster bonus and just $196,000 of his 2014 salary is guaranteed. Those amount decrease as years go on. The contract required that Mathieu in on the Arizona roster for all 16 games in both 2013 and 2014. He has conditions placed on all roster bonuses due to him each year to protect the team incase Mathieu slips up and gets suspended. Additional compensation will be given if Mathieu attends 99 percent of offseason activities and participates in minicamps.
The Cardinals are clearly not ready to put their full trust into Mathieu just yet. One NFL executive said the contract offered shows the team is prepared to make Mathieu earn his money. He is taking the first step into making sure he gets all the cash offered to him, but enrolling into the NFL Drug Testing program.
The program will make Mathieu the subject of up to 10 tests per month for the league. Mathieu has agreed to being tested once a week since being drafted by the Cardinals, now he will have no choice after being enrolled to the program. Mathieu's agent reports that both sides agreed to the deal.
Mathieu's past issues complicated the making of his contract. It took almost seven weeks to work out. He is not the first rookie to have this issue. The New England Patriots put several protective incentives into Aaron Hernandez's contract after he came out of college with red flags attached to his name.