AJ McCarron contract details: Buffalo Bills got a bargain on free-agent market

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback AJ McCarron (5) in the second half of a preseason NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts in Indianapolis, Thursday, Aug. 31, 2017. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)(AJ Mast)

Orchard Park, N.Y. -- Rather than spending big money on one of the top free-agent quarterbacks, the Buffalo Bills found themselves a bargain when the dust settled Wednesday night.

The Vikings and Kirk Cousins agreed to a deal reportedly worth north of $80 million guaranteed. The Cardinals gave Sam Bradford $20 million per year. Case Keenum got $18 million per year from the Broncos. Even Josh McCown got a one-year, $10 million deal from the Jets, who also signed Teddy Bridgewater to a contract that could be worth up to $15 million.

By then, only AJ McCarron remained among the veteran free-agent quarterbacks with starter potential. And the Bills were the only team left in need of a veteran quarterback. So the two agreed to a two-year contract, but it's the financial part of the deal that makes it a savvy move for the Bills.

Pro Football Talk was first to report that McCarron's contract is a two-year, $10 million deal. According to Spotrac, McCarron gets $6.8 million guaranteed at signing and a total of $7.9 million guaranteed in the deal. His cap hit in 2018 will be $3 million, while his cap hit in 2019 will be $7 million.

The better news is how easily the Bills can get out of the deal after one year. If the Bills release McCarron after 2018, the team would eat only $2 million in dead money.

Some consider McCarron a downgrade from Tyrod Taylor, who was traded to the Browns for a third-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. That may be true. But the Bills also created $10.4 million in cap savings by moving on from Taylor. Factoring in McCarron's $4.9 million cap hit, that's about $7.5 million saved plus the addition of a third-round pick. Not a bad haul for Bills general manager Brandon Beane.

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