Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The practice squad players that didn’t sign reserve/future contracts with the #Chiefs saw their current contracts expire on Tuesday.
The Kansas City Chiefs signed 12 practice squad players on reserve/future contracts last Wednesday. Those players on the practice squad and practice squad injured list that they hadn’t re-signed saw their contracts expire on Tuesday morning per league personnel notice.
Here’s a quick look at the five practice squad players who saw their contracts expire:
The Packers saved almost $12 million in salary cap space in 2023 by re-working Aaron Jones’ contract. Who could be next?
The Green Bay Packers freed up almost $12 million on the 2023 salary cap by re-working Aaron Jones’ contract last week. General manager Brian Gutekunst still has work to do on the cap front, so expect more restructures, regardless of whether Aaron Rodgers comes back or not.
Here are the most likely restructure options following Jones’ re-worked deal:
The Lions signed Chark to a 1-year deal that had two void years written into the deal
February 17th was a significant date on the NFL calendar for a handful of players, including Detroit Lions wide receiver DJ Chark.
Chark was one of six players around the league whose contract for 2023 officially voided on Friday. The Lions signed Chark as a free agent last offseason to a one-year, $10 million contract that had two void years written into the deal.
This is by contractual design; it’s a way for teams to spread out the salary cap hit for a player over a longer period of time. Chark will cost the Lions almost $6 million in dead cap in 2023 due to the void year. Chark is now an unrestricted free agent once the NFL year changes and free agency opens in March.
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The #Chiefs have signed 12 of their practice squad players to reserve/future contracts for the 2023 NFL season.
The Kansas City Chiefs front office has brought back a dozen practice squad players from the 2022 NFL season on reserve/future contracts.
If you’re unfamiliar with reserve/future contracts, these players won’t officially rejoin the team until the new league year begins in March. That’s when teams are permitted to expand roster size to 90 for the upcoming off-season. These are the players who will help fill out the off-season roster and compete for a role during the 2023 NFL off-season.
The practice squad players who are left unsigned are S Ugo Amadi, S Zayne Anderson, RB Melvin Gordon, TE Jordan Franks (injured), WR Marcus Kemp and DT Phil Hoskins. It’s possible all of those players could be re-signed at a later date.
Below you’ll find outlooks for each of the players signed to reserve/future deals:
There is value with a QB on a rookie contract, but an out-of-context stat is trying to debunk that. @TheRealForno looks to find the answer
Every year, we do this same old song and dance with the quarterback position. Why is that? It’s twofold.
It’s not solely about the fact that Cousins makes a large amount of money, it’s also about the flexibility that having a large contract allows. Cousins has never been willing to sign a long-term deal.
On Sunday night right after the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles by a score of 38-35, the discussion came up about whether it’s the right strategy to build your team around a rookie quarterback’s salary.
didn't realize how insecure folks get about the "win a SB w/QB on a rookie deal"
4 of the last 5 SB losers have employed a QB on a rookie deal. 8 of the last 9 SB winners have employed a QB not on a rookie deal
if ya want to get there and lose — keep bangin the drum, I guess
— Dustin Baker (@DustBaker) February 13, 2023
The stat itself doesn’t provide any real context. In fact, it completely lacks any context. Let’s dive in and find said context. Is it the best strategy?
The 49ers will have to decide on May 1 whether to exercise 5th-year options on Javon Kinlaw and Brandon Aiyuk.
Among the slew of decisions the 49ers will have to make this offseason is whether they’ll pick up the fifth-year options for 2020 first-round picks Javon Kinlaw and Brandon Aiyuk.
Players selected in the first round of the draft are given a regular four-year rookie deal with a club option for a fifth season. That fifth year is a fully-guaranteed amount which is tiered based on how the player performs. A rookie deal is typically pretty cheap, but the fifth-year option number generally isn’t.
The NFL on Tuesday released official salary numbers for fifth-year options on 2020 NFL draft picks. The deadline to exercise that option is May 1 at 1:00 pm Pacific Time.
Kinlaw’s fifth-year option as a defensive tackle with no Pro Bowl appearances is $11,665,000 for the 2024 season. Given his injury issues over the course of his career and some of his struggles when he has played, it’s hard to believe the 49ers will pick up that option.
If Kinlaw plays well in 2023, the 49ers could still look to bring him back on a new deal. That fully-guaranteed price tag in 2024 though is likely going to be too steep.
The decision on Aiyuk will be a little more interesting. Wide receivers with no Pro Bowl appearances have a fifth-year option number of $14,124,000. That’s not an outrageous number in the current WR market, and a big 2023 from Aiyuk could mean he’s worth well north of that dollar figure in free agency.
San Francisco would be smart to exercise that option on Aiyuk to keep him through at least 2024. It’d be worth the extra year to negotiate a long-term deal even if he plateaus from a production standpoint.
There’s still plenty for the 49ers to work out before they need to make decisions on either player. They’ll have free agency and the draft, and hopefully a clearer picture on their salary cap situation moving forward.
Regardless of whether San Francisco uses those options, 2023 will be a big year for both Kinlaw and Aiyuk with the clock winding down on their first NFL contracts.
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The #Chargers are overextended by more than $20 million after the NFL finalized its $224.8 million cap number earlier this week
The Los Angeles Chargers have some important decisions to make over the course of the next several months, and their salary cap numbers will have a huge impact on their financial mobility moving forward.
According to Sportrac’s numbers, the Chargers have contract commitments that put them about $20 million over the cap threshold ahead of the offseason, which will severely limit their ability to make enticing offers to free agents in March.
Heading into the final year of Justin Herbert’s rookie deal, this dearth of cap space could also keep the team from extending their phenom quarterback before the start of the 2023 regular season.
While there is plenty of money to be gained back by restructuring some of the more bloated contracts they have on their books, namely those of Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack, their situation relative to the cap is certainly less than ideal.
General manager Tom Telesco will need to reach deep into his bag of tricks to find ways to relieve some of the strain that currently characterizes the Chargers’ cap situation, and if he can’t it could affect Los Angeles’ ability to field a competitive team for years to come.
The NFL has set its 2023 salary cap at a record-high $224.8 million, which is great news for the New Orleans Saints — who are over the cap by more than $57 million:
The NFL informed teams today that the 2023 salary cap will be a record $224.8 million per club, sources tell me and @RapSheet.
That’s up from $208.2 million in 2022, $182.5M in 2021 (COVID adjustment), 198.2M in 2020 and $188.2M in 2019.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 30, 2023
Good news, everyone: the NFL told teams Monday that it has set the 2023 salary cap per team at $224.8 million, which is great for the New Orleans Saints. New Orleans currently has a staggering $281.9 million in cap commitments for the 2023 season, which means they must clear more than $57.1 million to reach cap compliance before the start of the new league year on March 14. No team is over the cap by a wider margin than the Saints.
That’s easier said than done, but we’ve seen New Orleans work around the cap well before, and they’ll get there again. It’s going to be another busy offseason for their salary cap specialist Khai Harley and general manager Mickey Loomis as they navigate contract situations with many players and we should anticipate restructures, releases, and a couple of creative extensions to reach the finish line.
Some obvious moves that jump out at you from their accounting sheet: restructures with cornerstone players like Marshon Lattimore (saving over $10 million), Ryan Ramczyk ($9.6 million), and Erik McCoy ($8 million) will be easy enough and cut into that negative cap figure. Parting ways with Jameis Winston and Wil Lutz brings $8.1 million in savings. Releasing Michael Thomas and Andrus Peat with post-June 1 designations frees up another $12.9 million later in the summer, but that’s well after free agency’s busiest signing period and the 2023 draft, so it isn’t quite as helpful.
Still, those moves leave the Saints in the red by about $21.4 million before the March deadline. They clearly have more work to do than we’ve mused on here. So watch this space in the weeks ahead as roster moves and salary cap maneuvers trickle in.
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Cameron Jordan and Marshon Lattimore carry the biggest New Orleans Saints salary cap hits ahead of the 2023 season, but that will change soon. Their top 10:
The New Orleans Saints are in a tight spot. They finished the 2022 season with a 7-10 record after rallying to win 3 of their last 4 games under Dennis Allen’s first year as their head coach. They don’t own a pick in the first round of the 2023 draft, and depending on where you look, they’re projected to sit over the 2023 salary cap by $53 to $57 million.
So they have a lot of work to do, but that’s the case every year. Some veterans will be let go, others will restructure their contracts to move money around, and a few will sign lucrative extensions as the Saints work to reach salary cap compliance and open up resources to add new talent. It’s the same as it ever was.
With the Saints’ 2022 season in the books, we’re shifting gears to look at their top 10 cap hits for 2023 (numbers via Spotrac):
The #Chiefs can add current free agents on reserve/future contracts for the 2023 NFL season beginning on Monday, Jan. 9.
The Kansas City Chiefs can begin adding unrestricted free agents on reserve/future deals beginning today.
On Monday, Jan. 9, the NFL permits teams to sign current free agents on reserve/future contracts for the 2023 NFL season. Players signed on these types of deals won’t count toward the team’s current active roster while they play in the postseason this year. When the 90-man offseason roster opens up at the beginning of the new league year in March, players signed to reserve/future contracts will officially be considered members of the team.
Expect that Kansas City will make moves to add recently-released practice squad players like Justin Hilliard and Bryan Edwards on reserve/future contracts. They could also scour the league and find some players whose practice squad contracts with their teams expired following the conclusion of the 2022 NFL regular season. Last season, the team signed a former CFL defensive back on a reserve/future contract. There are quite a few possibilities for Brett Veach and his staff to explore.
Two players who are on the Chiefs’ active roster this season — WR Justin Watson and LB Darius Harris — were reserve/future signings last season. Others include TE Matt Bushman (practice squad) and TE Jordan Franks (practice squad-injured).
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