The Indianapolis Colts locked up a key piece of their defense Monday, signing star defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to a two-year contract extension.
Buckner has been a key piece of the roster since his arrival in 2019. The Colts traded the No. 13 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft to the San Francisco 49ers in order to acquire him.
Since then, Buckner has been a massive piece of the team's identity on the field while serving as a team captain in the locker room.
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DeForest Buckner contract details
Buckner and the Colts agreed on a two-year contract extension worth $46 million, locking the star pass rusher through the 2026 season.
Buckner still had one year remaining on his current contract, which was valued at a $20.25 million base salary for the 2024 season. However, the new contract reduced his cap hit in a big way.
Buckner's $23 million average annual value on his new contract ranks fifth in the NFL among defensive tackles. The four players now ahead of Buckner in AAV are listed below.
- Kansas City Chiefs DT Chris Jones, $31.75 million
- Las Vegas Raiders DT Christian Wilkins, $27.5 million
- Baltimore Ravens DT Justin Madubuike, $24.5 million
- Carolina Panthers DT Derrick Brown, $24 million
During his four seasons with the Colts, Buckner has 32.5 sacks, 42 tackles for loss and 87 quarterback hits in 66 games (62 starts). He has earned three Pro-Bowl selections (2018, 2021, 2023) and one All-Pro First Team selection (2020).
DeForest Buckner salary cap hit
The Colts did something with Buckner's contract that they haven't done very often under Chris Ballard. Per Over The Cap, they added two void years to the end of Buckner's contract for 2027 and 2028, giving them the ability to spread out his signing bonus on the new contract.
The new contract guaranteed $33 million, and he received $23 million guaranteed at signing, which included an $18 million signing bonus. His base salary for 2024 and 2025 is fully guaranteed. The two void years added reduced his 2024 salary cap hit by $14.4 million, according to Over The Cap.
| Year | Base Salary | Signing Bonus | Roster Bonus | Guaranteed Salary | Cap Hit |
| 2024 | $2,250,000 | $6,100,000 | $0 | $2,250,000 | $8,350,000 |
| 2025 | $13,000,000 | $3,600,000 | $10,000,000 | $23,000,000 | $26,600,000 |
| 2026 | $13,000,000 | $3,600,000 | $10,000,000 | $0 | $26,600,000 |
| 2027 | Void | $3,600,000 | Void | Void | $7,200,000 |
| 2028 | Void | $3,600,000 | Void | Void | $0 |
What the void years mean
Adding voided years to a contract is a tactic teams use to spread out the guaranteed money (typically the signing bonus) over a longer period of time. Even though Buckner won't be on the team in 2027 and 2028, the Colts can add voided years on the contract as if he were. The remainder of the signing bonus ($7.2 million) is spread out over those final two seasons, and they'll be charged for that amount in 2027.
So, instead of the new signing bonus only being spread out over the span of three seasons, the Colts can spread the money out over the span of five seasons. Buckner still gets his money, and the Colts push some of the cap hit down the road.
