Patriots Rumors: How JuJu Smith-Schuster Can Earn His Incentives

JuJu Smith-Schuster’s New England Patriots contract is worth $33 million over three years.

But to reach the maximum value of that deal, the veteran wide receiver will need to earn $7.5 million worth of performance-based incentives.

ESPN’s Mike Reiss on Thursday provided a breakdown of those incentives.

This season, Smith-Schuster will receive $750,000 if he records at least 950 receiving yards and another $750,000 if he hits 1,100 receiving yards. For the 2024 and 2025 campaigns, he can earn $1 million bonuses at 800, 950 and 1,100 receiving yards.

Smith-Schuster won’t need a career year to hit those benchmarks, but he’ll need to be more productive than he’s been in the last several seasons. He’s topped 950 receiving yards just once in his six-year career, and that was back in 2018, when he racked up 1,426 on 111 catches and scored six touchdowns en route to his lone Pro Bowl selection.

The 26-year-old came close to that 950-yard mark last season, posting a 78-933-3 receiving line in 16 games for the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Patriots signed Smith-Schuster last week to replace former top receiver Jakobi Meyers, who signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency. Meyers led New England in receiving yards in each of the last three seasons but never tallied more than 866.