Sam Darnold, Deebo Samuel Among NFL Players with Contract Bonuses at Stake in Week 18

Several players will have added motivation to perform at a high level during Week 18 of the NFL regular season.

Multiple players of note are pursuing contract incentives that can realistically be reached in Week 18 in the form of yardage, touchdowns or sacks.

Per NFL.com's Zak Koeppel, some of the main incentives to track include Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold needing 150 passing yards to reach 4,000 on the season for a $500,000 bonus and Washington Commanders wide receiver Deebo Samuel requiring 93 receiving yards to get to 800 on the year for a $200,000 bonus.

Tennessee Titans running back Tony Pollard needs 66 rushing yards to get to 1,100 for a $250,000 bonus, Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle needs just seven scrimmage yards to reach 1,350 and a $1 million bonus and Seahawks pass-rusher Demarcus Lawrence needs two sacks to give him eight on the season and a $500,000 bonus.

Five catches will earn New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry a $250,000 bonus, Buffalo Bills tight end Dawson Knox can land an additional $100,000 with seven receiving yards and Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir will get a $150,000 salary escalator in 2026 if he scores a touchdown.

While incentive watching will be the most important aspect of some games this weekend, that won't be the case Saturday when the Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers meet with the NFC West title and the No. 1 seed in the NFC on the line.

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Winning will be paramount for both teams, but one big positive from Darnold's perspective is the idea that Seattle will likely need him to throw for at least 150 yards to have a legitimate chance to come out on top.

The same can be said for Dowdle when the Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers meet on Saturday with the NFC South hanging in the balance.

It shouldn't take Dowdle long to rack up seven yards, and he could end up with far more than that in a game that will see Carolina clinch the division and a playoff berth with a win.

Most of the other aforementioned players can perhaps focus more on incentives than the game itself. Samuel's Commanders and Pollard's Titans are both out of the playoff mix, Henry's Patriots have already clinched the AFC East, and Knox and Shakir's Bills have already clinched a playoff spot.

Coaches are typically very aware of their players' potential incentives, and they often go out of their way to help the players achieve them. Because of that, it won't be a shock if most or all of the incentives mentioned are ultimately reached.