Former New York Giants defensive back Dane Belton, who signed with the New York Jets in free agency, was the lone Giants player from the 2025 season to have been awarded a performance-based pay increase on his 2025 base pay.
Belton came in at No 22 out of the top 25 players to earn a pay bump, which is computed by using a player index (“Index”).
According to the league’s memo, “To calculate the Index, a player’s ‘PBP Playtime’ (defined as the player’s regular season total plays played on offense, defense and special teams, divided by the number of plays in which the player with the most total combined plays participated on that team) is divided by his “PBP Compensation” (defined as each player’s regular season full salary, including his prorated portion of signing bonus, and earned incentives).
“Each player’s Index is then compared to those of all other players on his team to determine the amount of his Performance-Based Pay. If a player’s full season salary is less than the CBA Minimum Salary for a player with seven or more Credited Seasons, additional salary will be imputed to that player so that his salary is equal to the Minimum Salary for a player with seven or more Credited Seasons (i.e., $1.255M for the 2025 season).”
Belton, a fourth-round pick by the Giants in 2022 out of Iowa, partook in 63 % of the Giants' defensive snaps (a career high). He finished with 100 defensive tackles (60 solo) and three forced fumbles, both also career highs.
Belton's 100 tackles on defense were second on the team, behind now former inside linebacker Bobby Okereke's 143.
Belton also added three tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, and five pass breakups as part of his final season with Big Blue.
Besides his increased workload on defense, Belton was a core member of the Giants' special teams units. He played 70% of the special teams snaps and finished as the team leader in special teams tackles with an eye-watering 20 total, seven of which were solo efforts.
Belton’s rookie deal paid him a $1.1 million base salary. With the performance-pay amount, he will get an additional $1.023 million, the money of which hits the Giants’ 2026 salary cap even though Belton is no longer with the team.
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