Your comp package has more decisions in it than you were told

It depends on your bracket now versus your expected bracket at distribution, how long the deferral runs, and how comfortable you are holding an unsecured claim on your employer. Non-qualified deferred compensation is a promise to pay, not a funded account, so a portion of your future income becomes exposed to company credit risk. For many executives it is worth using, sized deliberately rather than maximized.

That is determined by your plan document, and the variation between employers is significant. Some plans distribute on separation according to a schedule you elected years earlier; some accelerate; some have provisions tied to change in control. This is a question worth answering while you are still employed rather than during a transition.

Start with what happens to unvested equity, since acceleration provisions differ widely and often carry the largest dollar amount. Then look at your deferred compensation distribution triggers, your severance and change-in-control terms, and the tax year the whole thing lands in. Several of these interact, which is why looking at them separately tends to produce a worse answer.