According to ESPN Boston's Field Yates, the Patriots have decided to restructure the contract of wide receiver Julian Edelman, who signed a one-year deal to return to New England back on April 11.
The re-worked contract, according to Yates, has converted $40,000 of Edelman's $50,000 workout bonus to a roster bonus for making the 53-man roster for Week 1. Apparently, the value of Edelman's contract has not changed, and will still be worth a hair above $1 million.
With news coming out that Edelman has re-injured his foot, it seems logical that the team would want to re-work the contract. Because Edelman is not guaranteed a dime from the Patriots, he also would be in favor of a contract restructure, because the team has the power to simply release him without owing him any money at all. Yates elaborated on this:
Edelman's deal did not include any guaranteed money when he signed it, which was likely a reflection of the fact that he has had some struggles staying healthy during the first four years of his career and was coming off of foot surgery. If Edelman returns to health and makes the 53-man roster at the conclusion of training camp and remains on it for Week 1, he'll make back much of the money that was to be available through the workout program. He's long been one of the team's hardest workers, and this could be a situation where they don't want to penalize an injured player who is forced to miss the offseason program with the idea in mind that he was likely to be a full participant if healthy.
Last season, Edelman turned in one of his best career seasons as a Patriot, catching 21 passes for 235 yards with a career high three touchdowns. It was evident at the beginning of the season that offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels wanted to get Edelman more involved in the offense, and even took playing time away from Wes Welker to do it.
Even though Edelman was brought back for basically pocket change, that should not symbolize his importance to this team. Beyond his duties as a receiver, Edelman has served as the team's primary punt returner since he came into the league, and has established himself as one of the best in team history in that role.
My hope is that Edelman does recover from his foot injury and is able to come into camp and "work for the money" and ultimately make the roster.