Eagles' Reed Blankenship rakes in extra cash for 2023 playing time

Per the NFL's official press release, the Performance-Based Pay program was a fund created and used as a supplemental form of player compensation based upon a comparison of playing time to salary. Players become eligible to receive a bonus from the fund if they play at least one official down during the regular season.  

So, because Blankenship played 81% of snaps on defense last fall on an undrafted free agent deal, he more than doubled his $870,000 base salary with the performance-based bonus. 

Blankenship, a former UDFA out of Middle Tennessee State in 2022, started 15 of 17 games for the Eagles in 2023. He led the defense with 113 total tackles, 11 passes defended, three interceptions, and a fumble recovery. 

Baltimore Ravens guard John Simpson was the only player who received a higher bonus than Blankenship this year as the league paid him an additional $974,613. 

Players have been paid nearly $2.4 billion since the Performance-Based Pay program debuted in 2002 as part of the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement.