Sterling Shepard Contract Incentives, Bonus Paid By Bucs Despite WR Missing Stat Thresholds

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers reportedly paid veteran wide receiver Sterling Shepard $500,000 in bonuses despite falling short of his stated contract incentives in 2025.

According to Greg Auman of Fox Sports, Shepard's contract included bonus thresholds at 40 receptions, 50 receptions, 400 receiving yards and 500 receiving yards. For each incentive reached, Shepard was set to earn an additional $125,000.

The 33-year-old receiver didn't reach any of those marks, as he finished with 39 receptions for 371 yards. However, a big reason for that is the fact that he was inactive for the Bucs' final four games due to receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan all returning from injury.

Per Auman, the Bucs decided to pay Shepard $500,000 in bonuses anyway "as a gesture for his hard work" when Tampa's other top receivers were injured.

The Buccaneers dealt with a ton of injuries at wide receiver in 2025, as Evans missed nine games, Godwin missed eight and McMillan missed 13.

That resulted in rookies Emeka Egbuka and Tez Johnson, along with Shepard being quarterback Baker Mayfield's top options at wideout for large chunks of the campaign.

Shepard signed a one-year, $1.75 million contract with the Bucs in March 2025, and while it was far from guaranteed that he would even make the team, he ended up playing a pivotal role.

He ranked fourth on the team in receptions and third in receiving yards, marking his highest production in both categories since 2020 when he had 66 receptions for 656 yards with the New York Giants.

It is currently unclear if Shepard will return to the Bucs or play at all in 2026, but with Evans hitting free agency, re-signing is a possibility.