With NFL free agency just a few days away, the Raiders have begun moving some contracts around to create some space. Going into Thursday, they had around $18 million in cap space. Now, that number has moved up past $32 million with the help of a few restructures.
According to Field Yates of ESPN, the Raiders have restructured the contracts of running back Kenyan Drake and left tackle Kolton Miller. That move will create $14.5 million in cap space.
The Raiders have restructured the contracts of LT Kolton Miller and RB Kenyan Drake, creating $14.525M in 2022 cap space, per source.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) March 10, 2022
Miller was set to have a cap hit of $16.8 million in 2022, the second-highest on the team only to Derek Carr. He signed a massive contract extension last offseason, but the Raiders have decided to push some of his money down the road.
As for Drake, it was fair to wonder if he would be on the 2022 roster. The team could have released him and saved about $3 million. But instead, they restructured his contract and freed up around $5 million. Needless to say, that means his spot on the 53-man roster is safe.
The Raiders aren’t expected to be major players in free agency, but they now have the cap space to get a few deals done if a bargain arrives. Don’t be surprised if more restructures and/or releases happen over the next few days to save even more cap space.
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