One year ago, Matthew Slater entered the free agency market before ultimately returning to the New England Patriots on a two-year, $5.2 million contract. That contract, however, was essentially a one-year deal with a team option for the second season — an option the Patriots had until to the start of the 2019 league year to pick up or else the veteran would become an unrestricted free agent for the second year in a row.
This time, New England did not let it happen: the team exercised the $400,000 roster bonus that triggers the second year of Slater’s deal, one that hits the Patriots’ salary cap with $2.