Tag: cap hit

Grading the Saints’ signing of former 49ers DE Chase Young

We know the contract terms and 2024 salary cap hit. So how do you grade the Saints’ signing of Chase Young? Here’s our take:

It took a while for all the details to come to light, but now we know the structure, risks, and true costs of Chase Young’s contract with the New Orleans Saints. So now the fun part: evaluating it with a simple letter grade.

This is complicated, so stay with us. Young signed a one-year contract carrying $13 million in guarantees, and so long as he’s active and healthy for all 17 games, he’ll see every dollar. But his salary cap hit in 2024 is just over $3.4 million. How did the Saints do that? Why not pay it off all at once?

Young’s contract is structured to include $7.99 million in 17 per-game roster bonuses, of which 16 are treated as a signing bonus for accounting purposes. So they’re guaranteed now and spread out over the next five years to more easily fit on the books. The Saints will get a $470,000 cap credit next year for any games that Young misses in 2024.

So if this is a one-and-done deal the Saints will be paying $3.4 million for Young in 2024 and as much as $9.1 million in 2025 as dead money. If Young misses extensive time that 2025 dead money figure goes down significantly. It’s about as team-friendly a deal as it gets while also making concessions for the player. Young has a lot of incentive to recover quickly from offseason neck surgery and get back on the field in time for Week 1.

But Young is worth the risks. When he’s healthy, engaged, and firing on all cylinders he looks like the best pass rusher in the NFL. The Saints are hoping to get that version of him more than what the San Francisco 49ers saw after trading for Young last year: a slow-footed player who shied away from contact, and who they allowed to leave in free agency without a fight.

Grade: B

So with all this in mind, we’re grading this move with a B. Young looks like a good pickup, not a great one, and his availability is our greatest concern. It’s reassuring that the Saints protected themselves financially but fans have seen too many talented defensive ends go missing for weeks on end because of injuries in recent years. Hopefully Young can end that streak rather than continue it.

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Saints guaranteed every dollar of Chase Young’s $13 million contract

The New Orleans Saints guaranteed every dollar of Chase Young’s $13 million contract. But his real salary cap hit might be much lower:

Whew. This is a big deal. The New Orleans Saints guaranteed every dollar of their $13 million contract with free agent defensive end Chase Young, as reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter and confirmed by CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson.

But as is always the case with this team, don’t expect that to mean a simple $13 million salary cap charge on their accounting books. Depending on how this deal is structured, Young’s cap hit for 2024 could be as low as $3.5 million. Here’s how the accounting would look with four “ghost years” set to void at the end of the 2024 league year:

  • 2024 salary: $1,125,000; signing bonus proration: $2,375,000
  • 2025 signing bonus proration: $2,375,000
  • 2026 signing bonus proration: $2,375,000
  • 2027 signing bonus proration: $2,375,000
  • 2028 signing bonus proration: $2,375,000

The risk in doing this is that the Saints would be left with a dead money cap charge of $9.5 million next offseason should Young not re-sign on a new deal.

But the Saints have shown us before they’re comfortable paying that if need be. Andrus Peat is counting against the cap by more than $13.6 million and Marcus Maye has a dead money hit of $8.1 million for 2024 — and they both visited the Tennessee Titans on Monday as free agents who the Saints chose to let go. They paid comparable dead money hits in 2023 for David Onyemata ($10.1 million) and Marcus Davenport ($7.6 million).

If this is the route the Saints go, choosing to create short-term flexibility while jeopardizing future cap resources, it’s only a problem if Young fails to perform as expected in 2024. If he turns out to be a free agent bust and both sides move on, well: the Saints will have bigger problems to worry about  than where 3.4% of their salary cap is going. It’ll mean the pass rush failed to show up, again, and that the team lost a lot of games. And that Dennis Allen probably isn’t their head coach anymore. So when you take a big-picture view, this isn’t as big a gamble for the Saints at it might look at first glance.

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Updated Saints salary cap space after extending Tyrann Mathieu

How did extending Tyrann Mathieu and tendering Rashid Shaheed impact the Saints’ salary cap? Here’s an update on how much more space New Orleans must clear:

It isn’t really accurate to say we’re updating the New Orleans Saints’ salary cap space situation — the team doesn’t have any space under the cap right now because they’re still over the cap by about $10.7 million. But a couple of recent moves have changed the situation, so let’s take stock of where things currently stand.

Per Over The Cap’s experts, the Saints are currently in the red by an estimated $10,602,3364. Now that only reflects the information and roster moves which have been made publicly available. It’s very possible that the Saints have already checked all their boxes and reached cap compliance without leaking anything to the media. It’s not like they’re frantically working to beat the deadline (next Wednesday at 3 p.m. CT).

And two recent moves changed that projection. The Saints signed starting safety Tyrann Mathieu to a new two-year contract valued at $13.5 million, with a salary cap hit of just $5,567,000 for 2024. That pushed them down to a nearly-level $10.5 million level over the spending limit.

But another shoe dropped when the Saints tendered Pro Bowl returns specialist Rashid Shaheed, an exclusive rights free agent. That costs $985,000 against the cap. Because only the top 51 cap hits count on the books at this time of the year, Shaheed pushed a lesser-valued contract of $795,000 (there’s six different players all carrying that number) beneath the threshold. So the true cost to the cap was only $190,000, meaning the Saints are in the red by $10,792,634.

At least at the time of writing. More moves are on the way. Obvious dominoes yet to fall include cap hits for right tackle Ryan Ramczyk ($27 million), running back Alvin Kamara ($18.7 million), linebacker Demario Davis ($18.1 million) and do-it-all weapon Taysom Hill ($15.7 million). There are other levers the Saints can pull if they really want to max out their cap resources, but those are the big ones to watch.

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Saints reach agreement with Tyrann Mathieu on a contract extension

The Saints reached an agreement with Tyrann Mathieu on a new contract, keeping him in New Orleans through 2025:

This is good news: The New Orleans Saints reached an agreement with veteran safety Tyrann Mathieu on a new contract, which will keep him on the team through 2025. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill first reported news of his Mathieu’s deal, adding that it will lower his salary cap hit in 2024 from $12,067,000 “to about $5.5 million.”

But this isn’t just a restructure. It’s an extension, which CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson reports that his new deal is valued at $13 million. Mathieu was already under contract for 2024 but it was the last year of his deal, so he and the Saints agreed to add another year to it. He will now be a free agent in 2026 with the option to continue playing after his 33rd birthday or call it a career.

He’s been a good pickup for New Orleans. Mathieu has played 100% of the team’s defensive snaps in 2022 and 99% of them in 2023 while being credited with 7 interceptions, 17 passes deflected, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery to go along with 166 combined tackles through two years. With Marcus Maye being released at the start of the new league year, Mathieu is going to have to take on even more of a leadership role in the Saints’ secondary. He’s done well in that role thus far, and can close out his career doing it for his hometown.

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Report: Saints plan to restructure their contract with guard Cesar Ruiz

ESPN reports the New Orleans Saints plan to restructure their contract with right guard Cesar Ruiz, saving another chunk of salary cap resources:

More moves are coming for the New Orleans Saints as they continue to work to reach salary cap compliance — ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that the Saints plan to restructure their contract with right guard Cesar Ruiz, having already done so with quarterback Derek Carr and center Erik McCoy.

Ruiz signed a deal last summer that was primed for restructure: his extension included a league-minimum base salary in 2024 along with an $8 million roster bonus. In order to restructure his contract, the Saints are going to  have to convert that roster bonus into a signing bonus and pay it out over the four years remaining on Ruiz’s contract, which will save $6,580,000 against the cap this year. It’s a smart move since the money was already promised, it’s just being paid out in a way that makes life easier for the team’s accountants.

According to estimates from the experts at Over The Cap, the Saints were in the red by about $53.7 million after restructuring their contracts with Carr and McCoy. Adding Ruiz to the list will drop them down to approximately $47.2 million. Still a ways to go before reaching salary cap compliance (with more needed to sign veteran free agents), but already nearly half where they started the offseason, without cutting a single player. This has been the plan all along. We’ll have to see if the changes to the coaching staff can make enough improvements to justify it.

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Saints kick off their annual restructures with Pro Bowl center Erik McCoy

The Saints kicked off their annual salary cap strategy by restructuring their contract with Pro Bowl center Erik McCoy:

The New Orleans Saints kicked off their annual salary cap strategy with Pro Bowl center Erik McCoy, agreeing to a contract restructure that guarantees McCoy his money while helping the team’s accountants.

Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Saints are saving $7.18 million by restructuring McCoy’s contract — which they’ve done by converting most of his base salary and a $500,000 roster bonus due in March into a new signing bonus, adding a void year to spread out the signing bonus proration. The end result: McCoy’s salary cap hit drops from $13.7 million to about $6.5 million for 2024. He’s under contract through 2027.

McCoy earned his first trip to the Pro Bowl Games in 2023 as an injury replacement, and he was the Saints’ steadiest offensive lineman during their recent tumultuous season. They’ll be counting on him to anchor the middle of the line from the pivot spot for the foreseeable future. With Derek Carr returning at quarterback and Klint Kubiak installing his offense, having McCoy at the point is going to be good for all involved.

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Bleacher Report suggests a laughable Alvin Kamara trade offer

Bleacher Report suggested a trade sending Alvin Kamara to the Ravens that’s, well, laughable. The Saints would be fools to accept this offer:

Oh, brother. Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay suggested a trade sending New Orleans Saints star running back Alvin Kamara to the Baltimore Ravens that’s, well, laughable. The Saints would be fools to accept this offer:

  • Baltimore gets: Alvin Kamara
  • New Orleans gets: 2024 seventh-round pick (No. 247 overall)

There’s an obvious problem here in the value being exchanged. Kamara may not be the same big-play threat he was earlier in his career, but the Saints are hoping he can turn things around with a new offensive coaching staff and system on top of another year working with Derek Carr, whose tendency to check down quickly after the snap led to a lot of targets going Kamara’s way. A seventh-round pick is ridiculous compensation for No. 41.

But let’s get to the other problem with Bleacher Report’s proposal. Saints fans are better acquainted with salary cap gymnastics than most, so see if you can spot the problem. Here’s what Kay had to say about this trade idea:

The 28-year-old back would be an an ideal buy-low candidate for the Ravens, who could try to capitalize on the Saints’ need to shed salary. The Saints project to be $82.8 million over next year’s cap, but they could save $11.8 million by trading Kamara after June 1.

While NFL teams are allowed to designate up to two releases as a post-June 1 cut each offseason for salary cap purposes, no rule exists for trades. The Saints would have to keep Kamara on their books with an $18.7 million cap hit through free agency in March and the 2024 NFL draft in April before trading Kamara in June to reap those cap benefits — meaning the Ravens would have already spent the seventh-round pick that Bleacher Report says Baltimore should trade to New Orleans, and the Saints would have had to get under the cap without touching Kamara’s contract.

If that’s a typo or some other oversight, then it means they see a 2025 seventh rounder as fair compensation for a five-time Pro Bowl running back, and that’s lubricious. The Saints are going to need to figure out something with Kamara’s contract this year. Whether that means another restructure, a reworking, a pay cut, or something else unknown, they can’t have him counting $18.7 million against the cap. But that doesn’t mean they should let another team take them to the cleaners and trade away a fan-favorite playmaker for so little in return.

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Trading for Haason Reddick is a risky option for fixing the Saints pass rush

Trading for Eagles Pro Bowler Haason Reddick is a risky option for fixing the New Orleans Saints pass rush, but it could bring big rewards:

It’s no secret that the New Orleans Saints must improve their pass rush. They were one of the worst teams last season getting after the quarterback, and it’s still a major area of concern going into 2024 despite having so many high draft picks invested along the defensive line. The unit has to play better, and adding more players to the mix might be the best path forward.

So here’s an interesting option: Haason Reddick, the Philadelphia Eagles’ sacks leader in each of the last two years. A two-time Pro Bowler, Reddick has taken the quarterback down 27 times over the last two seasons, tacking on 3.5 sacks in the playoffs last year. The 29-year-old has bagged double-digit sacks in each of the last four seasons.

But there are risks involved. Reddick is seeking an extension that the Eagles might not want to pay, which is why NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports the team has given him permission to seek a trade. There’s a year left on his contract but no more guaranteed money. There are pros and cons to the Saints pursuing him.

It would be an expensive move. To start, any team trading for Reddick before June 1 would take on a $15.5 million salary cap hit ($1 million of which comes from a roster bonus due March 15). It’s possible a team could convince the Eagles to pay part of Reddick’s $14.25 million salary, reducing that cap hit, but it would require giving up better draft picks in a trade. The Saints did this in trading for Bradley Roby with the Houston Texans a few years ago and attempted it last season in discussing a deal with the Las Vegas Raiders for Hunter Renfrow.

Let’s say the Eagles reject that proposal, though. So the Saints trade for Reddick and then must figure out their next step. The likeliest move would be a restructure — reducing Reddick’s salary to the veteran minimum and paying the difference as a $14.25 million signing bonus, which would be paid out over five years for cap purposes. Reddick’s 2024 cap hit would fall at about $5.1 million, which is mighty affordable for a talented pass rusher.

The downside? Reddick’s contract expires in 2025, which means he would leave behind roughly $10.4 million in dead money if he leaves in free agency. And the whole reason he’s available is because he’s seeking a trade to a team that will sign him to an extension. It’s tough to see him approving a trade to New Orleans if the Saints are not interested in extending him either.

And let’s get to the other cost of this move — the trade. Beyond the fact that Eagles general manger Howie Roseman has gotten the better of his Saints counterpart Mickey Loomis so often and so badly that Loomis has publicly voiced concern about dealing with him, star pass rushers in their prime aren’t cheap. A good comparison for Reddick at this stage in his career is Khalil Mack, who was traded from the Chicago Bears to the Los Angeles Chargers a few years ago. Mack was a year older than Reddick is now with lesser production in the years leading up to the trade:

  • Khalil Mack 2019-2021: 23.5 sacks, 84 solo tackles (25 tackles for loss), 8 forced fumbles (4 recoveries) with an interception in 39 games (two Pro Bowls).
  • Haason Reddick 2021-2023: 38 sacks, 101 solo tackles (36 tackles for loss), 7 forced fumbles (4 recoveries) in 50 games (two Pro Bowls).

Mack was traded for a current-year second-round pick and a future sixth-round pick. Any deal for Reddick would have to outdo that. Another part of the equation is that Mack still had three years left on his contract when he was traded. Remember, Reddick is looking for a new deal.

While the Saints have a plan to reach salary cap compliance and open up room for new additions, it’s fair to ask whether Reddick makes sense for them. Considering their cap resources, the draft picks they would need to invest in him, and their defensive system, he might not be the best option. Head coach Dennis Allen’s preference for heavyset defensive ends would make the 6-foot-1, 240-pound Reddick an awkward fit. They did find success late last year allowing the 6-3, 225-pound Zack Baun to rush off the edge but only in a limited capacity. There’s a good chance Allen would try to fit a square peg into a round hole and ask Reddick to play in coverage as an off-ball linebacker, which is something he hasn’t enjoyed doing in Philadelphia.

We should expect the Saints to explore all their options in upgrading the pass rush off the edge. Cameron Jordan is past his prime. Young draft picks like Payton Turner and Isaiah Foskey have not produced. Tanoh Kpassagnon is a good veteran to have in the rotation, but Carl Granderson is the only proven commodity in the group. Trading for someone like Reddick might make sense, but the Saints could also consider the free agent market and ultimately wait and see who is available in the draft. The only path that isn’t an option: running it back with things the way they stand now.

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As expected, Saints will likely restructure Derek Carr’s contract

As expected, the Saints will likely restructure Derek Carr’s contract and tie themselves to the QB through 2025:

This was the way the wind was blowing: the Times-Picayune’s Luke Johnson reports that the New Orleans Saints are likely restructuring their contract with Derek Carr this offseason, which will bring the team much-needed salary cap relief while tying themselves closer to the quarterback. His contract would effectively become guaranteed through 2025.

Carr currently has a salary cap hit at $35.7 million, highest on the team. A standard restructure would reduce his already-guaranteed base salary from $30 million to the veteran’s minimum and pay the difference out as a signing bonus, which is prorated over the next five years. That lowers his cap hit down to about $12.6 million in 2024, saving the Saints more than $23 million this year. This was the plan all along — committing to Carr with heavy guarantees through his first two years. That’s how they got him to sign here instead of with, say, the New York Jets or Carolina Panthers.

Now, New Orleans would still be in the red by more than $60 million after restructuring Carr. The Saints would still by higher over the cap by a higher figure than any other team; the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins both need to clear about $51 million to reach cap compliance. There’s a lot of work still to be done. This is just the first big step.

The downside to doing this? Carr’s cap charges in 2025 ($45.7 million) and 2026 ($55.7 million) go even higher, increasing by about $5.7 million in each season. Because this money was already guaranteed, just paid out differently for accounting purposes, it’s more difficult to get out of Carr’s contract later on. If he fails to improve with a new offensive coordinator in the fall then general manager Mickey Loomis will be left with an albatross around his neck. Releasing Carr before his contract expires would accelerate all of those $5.7 million signing bonus payouts into the current year rather than scratching them out over time.

It’s more complicated if you look further out. If Carr is on the roster by March 17, 2025 then his $30 million salary for that season will become fully-guaranteed, too. Let’s say the Saints do restructure Carr this offseason, which is what’s expected. That puts his 2025 cap hit at more than $51.4 million. They’ll have to make a decision next year on whether to cut him (to negligible salary cap benefit) or restructure him again. Knowing Loomis, the latter route is more likely.

Carr was always going to be in New Orleans for at least 2023 and 2024. Restructuring his contract now makes it highly likely he’ll be the quarterback again in 2025. His current deal runs out in 2027. Who knows what the team looks like at that point? Loomis and Dennis Allen could both be gone. But Carr, and all the money they chose to invest in him, will remain. Let’s hope he can carry his strong finish to the 2023 season — Carr led the league in touchdown passes through the final five weeks — over into the years ahead with a new offensive coordinator calling plays, making this big contract a little more palatable.

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Saints make a controversial QB pick in Daniel Jeremiah’s first 2024 mock draft

The Saints made a controversial pick in Daniel Jeremiah’s first 2024 mock draft, adding Oregon quarterback Bo Nix to replace Derek Carr:

There aren’t many more draft analysts who garner more respect than NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah, a former pro scout who covers the annual draft in great detail each year. He’s hit the nail on the head with some New Orleans Saints picks in years past, so it’s important to pay attention and see what he’s projecting with the 2024 NFL draft just up ahead.

But this pick is a doozy. Jeremiah shared his first 2024 mock draft on Friday, and he has the Saints making a controversial selection with Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix at No. 14. Here’s why Jeremiah says Nix should be a Saint:

I’m a big fan of Nix’s game. I think his experience as a five-year starter is a positive for him as he heads to the next level. He would be a plug-and-play starter in New Orleans. I’m not confident the Saints view Derek Carr as the answer.

Before transferring to Oregon for the 2022 season, Nix was a three-year starter at Auburn, where he didn’t exactly wow fans in the SEC. He threw 16 interceptions and fumbled 20 times in 34 games. But he flipped a switch after going to Oregon; Nix has turned the ball over just 13 times in 27 games with the Ducks while improving as a passer and making better use of his legs, taking just 6 sacks in each of the last two years and scoring 20 rushing touchdowns.

He’s dynamic and exciting to watch. But it’s going to be tough for Saints fans to overlook his early-career struggles and the questionable level of competition he’s faced out west. He wouldn’t exactly be stepping into a welcoming environment.

And none of that touches on the elephant in the room, which Jeremiah addressed by sharing, “I’m not confident the Saints view Derek Carr as the answer.” That could be Jeremiah’s own conjecture (and it runs against the public support Carr has received from Mickey Loomis and Dennis Allen), but it shouldn’t be ignored.

Carr’s contract makes him too expensive to keep as a backup, and the Saints have already tied themselves to him through 2024 by guaranteeing the second year of his salary when they signed him. If they restructure him this year, as is expected, he’ll be locked in through 2025 as well. It’s possible the Saints could keep Carr on his $35.7 million cap hit this year and then part ways in 2025, freeing up the starting job for Nix, but it would take some seriously crafty salary cap accounting to make it work. And asking a rookie quarterback who’s about to celebrate his 24th birthday to wait another year or two to start feels unlikely.

But you never know with this team. Maybe Nix is high on their radar, and maybe they’re higher on this quarterback class than they are in Carr’s long-term projection. All of these unknowns are what make the draft cycle so compelling.

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