Sammy Watkins, Chiefs Agree to Revised Contract Worth $9M

The Kansas City Chiefs and wide receiver Sammy Watkins reached an agreement Friday on a restructured one-year contract for the 2020 NFL season that reportedly saves the franchise $5 million in salary-cap space.

Watkins, who was set to enter the final season of his three-year, $48 million deal with the reigning Super Bowl champions, saw his base salary drop from $13.75 million to $9 million, but the pact includes incentives that could elevate the value to $16 million, per Yahoo Sports' Terez A. Paylor.

NFL Network's Mike Garafolo broke down how Watkins' new bonuses worked:

As ESPN's Field Yates noted, the Chiefs were down to $177 in cap space at the end of March. The revised deal with Watkins gives them some flexibility heading into the 2020 NFL draft.

His new contract seemingly eliminates the possibility he'll skip next season, an idea he raised before the Super Bowl as a chance to let his body recover after a series of injuries dating back to his time with the Buffalo Bills.

"Or I might just take off a year after we win the Super Bowl, you never know," he told NFL.com's Kevin Patra.

The 26-year-old Clemson product looked primed for a monster 2019 campaign after he recorded nine catches for 198 yards and three touchdowns in a season-opening victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

He couldn't build off that success, though. He finished the year with 52 catches for 673 yards, and he went 14 consecutive games without finding the end zone, a drought that finally ended in the AFC Championship Game. He added five receptions for 98 yards in the team's Super Bowl triumph.

Watkins' status with the Chiefs could have come into question if not for the reworked deal. The emergence of Mecole Hardman and Demarcus Robinson gave K.C. solid depth at the position behind four-time Pro Bowl selection Tyreek Hill.

The 2014 Bills first-round pick could struggle with consistency once again in 2020. He'll need to fend off Hardman and Robinson in the fight for targets behind Hill and star tight end Travis Kelce.