Dan Bailey Hit Four Field Goals Worth $1 Million on Sunday

Dan Bailey went 4/4 on field goals of 34, 37, 38 and 39 yards. This is not notable except for the fact that it earned him a $1 million bonus.

Going into the game, Bailey was 23/25 on the year. His contract stipulated bonuses at the following levels, according to Adam Schefter.

90 percent — $1 million
87.5 percent — $750K
84 percent — $500K
80 percent — $250K

Regardless, had he missed one of the four, he would have finished at 89.6 percent and missed on $250K. Had he missed two, he would have gone down to $500K. Had he missed three, he would have finished at 82.7 percent and presumably only earned $250K. Had he missed them all he would have finished below 80 percent and earned $0. That means every kick was worth a quarter of a million dollars!

This all sounds insane, but it’s also true. Bailey — who makes $1 million a year — received a matched salary for hitting 27-29 (93 percent) of his field goals on the season. And the grand finale was a 4-for-4 effort in a 21-19 game that was meaningless for both the 10-6 Vikings and 8-8 Bears. And it’s not as if they were chippies, either!

Vikings’ kicker Dan Bailey, who has made 92 percent of his field goals this season (23/25), earns a $1 million incentive if he stays about the 90 percent threshold. If he’s between 87.5-90 percent, it falls to $750,000; if he’s b/w 84-87.5 percent, it’s $500,000. Big day today.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 29, 2019

Bailey is currently 6th all-time in NFL field goal percentage as the Vikings head to NOLA on Sunday to take on the New Orleans Saints.