[jwplayer lQcHJddB-ThvAeFxT]
Smart NFL teams are always looking to maximize their resources, and the New Orleans Saints might be the leading innovators for that movement. Between their use of the veteran’s minimum salary benefit and “ghost years” woven into contracts (spreading salary cap hits out into years in which the player won’t be signed to New Orleans), the Saints have done everything possible to, well, get into creative accounting.
It’s left them with one of the league’s strongest rosters and a hair above $8.2 million in salary cap space for the 2020 season; to be exact, we estimate them with $8,207,233 in funds. The analysts at Over The Cap have the Saints with a little north of $8.88 million to spend, but that doesn’t account for their contract with Ty Montgomery or projected rookie deals, all of which will subtract roughly $680,000 from the total. Our number includes those details and the recent signings of James Hurst, Anthony Chickillo, and Johnson Bademosi.
Following the release of Pro Bowl guard Larry Warford, just five players count for more than 4% of the total salary cap: Drew Brees ($23.65 million), Demario Davis ($9.9 million), Cameron Jordan ($9.09 million), Jared Cook ($9 million), and Terron Armstead ($8.35 million). Only a few others are taking up 3% or greater of the cap, between Sheldon Rankins ($7.69 million), Michael Thomas ($7 million), and Malcom Brown ($6 million). That reflects how many mid-level salaries the Saints have on the books as well as their success in drafting young, affordable talent.
So how does that compare with the rest of the NFL? The Saints have more salary cap space right now than the reigning Super Bowl champions (OTC lists the Kansas City Chiefs with $4.87 million to burn), as well as Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers (also at $4.87 million). But no team is working tighter against the cap than the New England Patriots, left with only $1.33 million after Brady’s departure. The Pittsburgh Steelers ($5.7 million) and Los Angeles Rams ($5.39 million) are also trailing the Saints in cap resources.
This is familiar territory for the Saints, and it sets them up well to navigate a quiet stretch of the offseason. They could begin hammering out extensions for members of the 2021 free agent class, which will be expensive — Davis, Alvin Kamara, and Marcus Williams each have grounds to start the bidding at $12 million in annual salary. The Saints got a jump on that process last summer by signing Jordan, Thomas, and Wil Lutz to multiyear extensions, and they might be wise to follow that strategy again.
On the other hand, NFL ownership is wringing its hands over potential lost revenue if fans are unable to attend games due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Saints alone project to lose $440 million if the Who Dat Nation is forced to watch from home. They might be better off rolling this excess spending-room over into the 2021 fiscal year to help offset a possible salary cap decline.
[vertical-gallery id=35147]