Perhaps the worst part of the Albert Haynesworth saga is that he's doing this even after collecting a $21 million bonus check that was owed to him if he was on the team after April 1. Naturally, the Redskins have considered trying to recoup that $21 million after Haynesworth didn't show for Redskins minicamp.
But if the Redskins think they'll actually get that money back, they're in for a harsh surprise, writes Pro Football Talk.
Based on the terms of the contract itself, the Redskins have the right to recover not only the $21 million in signing bonus money paid on April 1 but also $4,285,716 of the $5 million paid to him in 2009. But the contract ignores specific language in the 2006 CBA, which dramatically limits the forfeiture of cash money from signing bonuses to two specific circumstances.
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In English, this means that skipping a mandatory minicamp places none of the signing bonus in jeopardy. Ever.
If Haynesworth were to skip some of training camp, this could change, but otherwise, the Redskins are probably stuck. As PFT writes:
If Haynesworth fails to show up for even one day of training camp, the Redskins then can pursue 25 percent of the 2010 allocation of the initial $5 million signing bonus, and 25 percent of the 2010 allocation of the $21 million signing bonus paid this year. But if he shows up for training camp (and he reportedly plans to do) and for every game, he gets to keep his money.