Caleb Williams’ team made oddball, out-of-the-box requests for his rookie contract: Report originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
After multiple reports revealed Tuesday evening that Bears rookie Caleb Williams had signed his first NFL contract, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio put the kibosh on those reports, reporting he had not signed his deal.
Why? Florio reported on Wednesday that Williams’ team was haggling with the Bears over final language for his first contract. Part of that negotiation, per Florio, included an attempt to keep the franchise tag off of Williams’ contract after he presumably finishes his fifth season with the team. The Bears declined.
But it didn’t end there. After the Bears announced Williams signed his deal, Florio revealed Williams’ camp made other attempts to help the rookie signal caller earn untaxed money.
According to Florio, Williams’ camp attempted to convince the Bears to pay Williams as an LLC (Limited Liability Company). In Illinois, LLCs have zero income tax filing requirements, meaning Williams wouldn’t have to pay taxes on his four-year contract worth $39 million.
Another attempt Williams’ camp made was earning a forgivable loan, which would have resulted in “Williams getting the money tax-free until the loan was forgiven, as many as 10 years into the future,” Florio reported.
The Bears, according to Florio, went to the NFL with both of these proposals, finding no evidence they were invalid in the NFL’s CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement).
But the league nixed both of the proposals.
The NFL told the Bears player’s money can’t go to a business entity other than the player, per the report. There was no reason given for why the league axed the idea of a forgivable loan.
The clauses Williams’ team pitched could’ve been historic. No rookie NFL player has ever notched a clause in their first deal to exclude the prospect of a franchise tag from the future. And no player has ever been paid in the form of an LLC or through a loan.
The ideas were creative and out-of-the-box. It’s no harm or foul for Williams’ team to try, either. Williams is a known businessman who tries to surround himself with the best business minds available. His father, Carl, worked for years in commercial real estate, too.
There could’ve been consequences had Williams not signed before the Bears training camp’s first practice unfolding this Saturday. If he hadn’t signed before then, he wouldn’t have been eligible to participate.
But the Bears got it done without guaranteeing Williams something that could’ve earned them risk from the deal.
