Dede Westbrook Current Contract Overview
Dede Westbrook is a wide receiver currently under contract with the Houston Texans. His most recent deal was a one-year veteran minimum contract signed in 2024. The agreement includes a base salary of roughly $1.08 million and a full guarantee on the signing bonus. The contract is structured to provide the Texans with a low-risk veteran depth option at the wide receiver position. The deal follows his release from the Minnesota Vikings earlier in the 2024 offseason. OverTheCap provides the full salary breakdown for Westbrook's current and past deals.
The veteran minimum base salary for 2024 is set by the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and the NFLPA. Westbrook's contract falls under the restricted free agent veteran minimum tier. The total cap hit for the Texans in 2024 is approximately $1.1 million. This figure includes the base salary and prorated signing bonus. The contract has no performance incentives that would significantly alter the cap number. The deal is designed to be a short-term, low-cost addition to the Texans' wide receiver room.
Contract History and Previous Deals
Before joining the Texans, Westbrook signed a one-year deal with the Minnesota Vikings in 2023. That contract was also a veteran minimum agreement with a base salary near $1.1 million. The Vikings released him during the 2024 roster cuts after he struggled with injuries and production. Prior to the Vikings, Westbrook had a brief stint with the Indianapolis Colts in 2022. The Colts released him after just a few weeks on the roster. Spotrac tracks his full transaction history across multiple NFL teams.
Westbrook's most significant contract was his rookie deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was drafted in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The rookie contract spanned four years with a total value of roughly $3.1 million. The deal included a signing bonus of around $645,000. The base salaries for the first two years were approximately $535,000 and $610,000 respectively. The final year of the deal was a team option that the Jaguars did not exercise. After the rookie deal expired, Westbrook became a restricted free agent.
Financial Terms and Cap Implications
Signing Bonus and Guarantees
The 2024 contract with the Texans features a signing bonus that is fully guaranteed upon signing. The exact bonus figure is not publicly disclosed but aligns with the standard veteran minimum structure. The guarantee means the Texans are obligated to pay the bonus amount regardless of injury or performance. The base salary is not guaranteed, giving the team flexibility to cut Westbrook with minimal dead money. The contract's total guaranteed money is therefore limited to the prorated signing bonus. This structure makes the deal highly flexible for the Texans' roster management.
Cap Hit and Dead Money
The cap hit for Westbrook's current deal is the sum of the base salary and the prorated signing bonus. If the Texans were to release Westbrook in 2024, the dead money would be limited to the remaining prorated bonus. Because the base salary is not guaranteed, cutting him would not result in a large cap penalty. The dead money figure would be a small fraction of the total cap space. This low-risk structure is typical for veteran minimum deals signed late in a season or during the offseason. The Texans' official cap