Four Bengals receive over $1 million collectively in performance-based bonuses

Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict wasn't the only Bengals player that received a performance-based bonus from last year. Burfict, who received a $315,848 bump to go with his $480,000 base salary in 2013, became the first Bengals linebacker to join the Pro Bowl since Jim LeClair in 1976.

Safety George Iloka was also awarded $281,515 in a performance-base payment, which is the fourth-most in the NFL. Iloka led the secondary with 67 tackles and eight passes defensed along with two forced fumbles, a recovery and this interception.

Wide receivers Mohamed Sanu and Marvin Jones were given $159,000 and $156,000 respectively. Jones generated 10 touchdown receptions on 51 grabs with 712 yards receiving, joining A.J. Green as the first Bengals wide receiver duo to post double-digit touchdowns in franchise history. Sanu posted 47 receptions for 455 yards receiving and two scores.

Players will receive $110.72 million in Performance-Based Pay for their performance during the 2013 season. By agreement with the NFL Players Association, the players will receive their performance-based pay distributions on April 1, 2016.

Players have been paid over $800 million cumulatively since the inception of the Performance-Based Pay program, which was implemented as part of the NFL’s 2002 Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NFL Players Association.

Under the Performance-Based Pay system, a fund is created and used as a supplemental form of player compensation based on a comparison of playing time to salary. Players become eligible to receive a bonus distribution in any regular season in which they play at least one official down.

Performance-Based Pay is computed by using a "player index." To produce the index, a player’s regular-season playtime (total plays on offense, defense and special teams) is divided by his adjusted regular-season compensation (full season salary, prorated portion of signing bonus, earned incentives). Each player’s index is then compared to those of the other players on his team to determine the amount of his pay.