It's easy enough to circumvent anyway. If Watson is "guaranteed" a salary of 46 mil for 2026, then it could be phrased as the team exercising an option on the first day of that league year to keep him at a salary of 46 mil. If they decline the option, they owe him a 46 mil buyout. So either way he gets the money but until the contingency actually arises on the first day of the league year, they haven't made a decision and therefore don't need to fund anything in advance.