As 49ers wins pour in, so does the money, as players cash in contract bonuses
Mac Jones, Kendrick Bourne and Jauan Jennings have all pocketed bonuses this season, boosting an already thriving team morale.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Mac Jones told his buddy he is going to need some Cartier glasses.
It’s the least Kendrick Bourne could do, especially after he was practically promising every teammate in the San Francisco 49ers’ locker room a cut of his $500,000 bonus after a Week 16 win over the Indianapolis Colts.
The only thing better than winning games is getting more money thrown at you, and the 12-4 49ers are enjoying all of it.
Bourne, whom the Niners didn’t sign until September, hit one contract incentive threshold after reaching 500 receiving yards in Indianapolis. He can make another $250,000 for hitting 600 — he needs 49 yards Saturday night against the Seattle Seahawks. Jones, who started eight games at quarterback in place of Brock Purdy, also cashed in with $500,000. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk earned $250,000 when he was named to the Pro Bowl — for the 10th time — last week. Receiver Jauan Jennings has already pocketed $1.6 million and should add $800,000 on Saturday.
Bourne enjoyed being razzed by his teammates when he came up a yard short of his bonus in Week 15 against the Tennessee Titans — having lost 2 yards after one catch — and then had an early catch overturned against the Colts after he didn’t secure the ball.
“It was fun leading up to it,” Bourne said. “Just the support from the coaches, my teammates, and the hard work that I put in. … They see that, and you get the respect from your colleagues and people around you.”
Bourne and Jones have been good friends since their playing days together for the Patriots, and the two really helped each other out this season. Bourne had 142 yards receiving in back-to-back games with Jones, the first one a dramatic Thursday night win over the Los Angeles Rams on Oct. 2.
Jones received a $400,000 bonus for winning four games as a starter, then cashed another $100,000 after the fifth, finishing 5-3 as a starter. So much for wins not being a quarterback stat.
“This was my first year being a free agent, so that was something new,” Jones said. “You’re gonna work hard no matter what, but once you are aware of them, yeah, I mean, you’re thinking about it a little bit.
“Most importantly, you’re trying to win the games that you’re in, and that would be happening anyway. It’s not like we’re just getting free money. That’s the best way to do it.”
As for Jennings, he has earned an $800,000 bonus for every five games in which he’s played at least 35 snaps this season. He will likely hit the $2.4 million max with his 15th game on Saturday. It’s been quite a shift from Week 6, when a frustrated Jennings told reporters he was playing with “five broken ribs.”
“It turned out to be a very, very, very fun season,” Jennings said.
(There were reports that Jennings earned an extra $666,666 for reaching 600 receiving yards on Sunday, but that clause applied to the 2024 season — the play-count incentives were added in his new, restructured deal in September.)