After players voted to approve the proposed collective bargaining agreement on Saturday, the NFL announced an important piece of news for the current offseason. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the salary cap will be $198.2 million in 2020.
That’s slightly lower than the previous projection of $200 million, but within the original projected range of $196.8 million and $201.2 million.
The NFL Management Council just informed team officials the salary cap will be $198.2 million per club in 2020, per sources.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 15, 2020
Last year, the salary cap was $188.2 million. That’s an increase of only 5.3 percent, which is the smallest since 2013.
This would be a 5.3% increase, the smallest since 2013. https://t.co/c8ooDxcSWj
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) March 15, 2020
For the Rams, that gives them a little bit less room to work with as five starters are set to become unrestricted free agents on Wednesday at 4 p.m. ET.
According to Over The Cap, the Rams were projected to have $19 million in cap space with the salary cap set at $200 million. Now that it’s $1.8 million less than the projection, the Rams are expected to have about $17.2 million to spend this year.
They can free up money by restructuring Jared Goff’s deal, which would create $16.8 million, while also releasing or trading other players on the roster. It remains to be seen if they’ll make any of those moves, though, as the start of the new league year is set to begin Wednesday.