Which NFC North Team is in the Best Salary Cap Situation?
Josh Frey
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Wednesday morning we got the disappointing newsbreak that the NFL salary cap would be lower than many were expecting as Adam Schefter reported it would sit at $182.5 million. With that news, teams have been scrambling to find ways to reach that cap as the new league year approaching. With this date of March 17th so near, let’s take a look at how the new salary cap has impacted the NFC North as a whole. All cap numbers are per Spotrac.
Chicago Bears
The Bears are coming off a disappointing 8-8 season and Wild Card loss in New Orleans where Mitch Trubisky seemed incapable and just flat out terrified to throw the ball downfield. They entered this offseason with so many questions on offense, and the only real answer we have right now comes with the franchise tag that was applied to WR Allen Robinson. They still seem to be in the mix for either a Russell Wilson or Deshaun Watson trade, and it does not appear that they will bring back Mitch Trubisky after the two sides did not reach an extension deal before Trubisky’s contract ended on Wednesday.
The Chicago Bears are a franchise that has always prided itself on defense, and that looks to remain that way in 2021. Their salary table is extremely defense-heavy at the top, with five of their top six cap hits currently coming from the defensive side of the ball, including over $61 million set to go to the trio of Khalil Mack, Kyle Fuller, and Robert Quinn.
All of that said, the Bears are in by far the worst cap position of the division right now. They sit $22.5 million over the cap, with only the Rams having a worse position in the entire NFL. If the Bears do in fact make a trade for Watson or Wilson in the next couple days, they will more than likely be in an even worse cap spot.
It is worth noting that the Bears will have a rollover of a little over $7.6 million, so they are actually just under $14.9 million over their adjusted cap. They still have to make moves to get under that cap, and that may include a cut of either Fuller or Akiem Hicks. During a press conference last week, general manager Ryan Pace could not guarantee both stars would be in Chicago for 2021.
With both players entering the final year of their contract, the Bears have certainly come forward with extension offers to ease the cap burden, but nothing has come to fruition. Another player to watch in this is Jimmy Graham as Chicago would save $7 million by cutting the veteran TE.
Detroit Lions
Unlike Chicago, Detroit is sitting quite handsomely under the cap, with nearly $8.5 million of space right now. The Lions of course made a blockbuster trade earlier this offseason when they moved Matthew Stafford to LA for Jared Goff and a package of draft picks including two future first rounders.
The biggest question for Detroit right now revolves around who Jared Goff will be throwing the ball to in 2021. All three of Marvin Jones, Danny Amendola, and Kenny Golladay are entering free agency. Of course, there is potential that the Lions could go after one of the premier wide receivers in the draft with their sixth overall pick. However, it might make more sense for them to shore up a defense that struggled mightily in 2020.
As stated, the Lions have the most cap space of any NFC North team. They also have an embarrassment of riches rolling over to their adjusted cap. Their $15.2 million is nearly as much as the other three teams combined. With this massive rollover, they have about $23.7 million in adjusted cap space. They will certainly be able to find solid free agents to fill in the holes at wide receiver.
Green Bay Packers
The Packers are another team that had decisions to make going into the offseason, recently making a big one regarding star RB, Aaron Jones. They have decided against franchise-tagging the Pro-Bowler and will instead allow him to test free agency.
Green Bay also has some questions along the offensive line after releasing their center Corey Linsley. He is expected to get a monster deal in free agency as he was by far PFF’s top graded center in 2020. Both Linsley and the Packers hinted that he will be leaving Green Bay. The Packers will also be looking to get better on the defensive side of the ball after hiring new defensive coordinator, Joe Barry.
However, the Packers are another team in this division that is cap-strapped. They are currently $13.6 million over the $182.5 million mark, but their rollover won’t be helping much either. Green Bay is rolling over the lowest amount of any team in the NFC North, at just $3.6 million. This puts them a clean $10 million over their adjusted mark, so they certainly have a few more moves to make.
Some of the moves made could include something like extending either Aaron Rodgers and/or Davante Adams. The most likely of the two seems like it would be Adams as he enters the final year of his contract, and it really feels like Green Bay’s front office wants to move onto Jordan Love for whatever reason. The Packers have a potential out on Rodgers’ contract following the 2021 season; that will be an interesting situation to watch next offseason.
Minnesota Vikings
And finally, we get to the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings have made a few big moves since the salary cap was made official, including cutting Riley Reiff. All signs seem to point to an extremely young offensive line in 2020 as Ezra Cleveland will probably get the reps at left tackle, and the Vikings could make draft moves to obtain a high profile guard.
With their recent moves, the Vikings have managed to clear up enough cap space to currently sit about $8.2 million under the cap. With a rollover of nearly $4.8 million, they are about $15 million under the adjusted cap. This money is certainly enough to find a veteran offensive linemen or possibly another veteran pass rusher to put alongside Danielle Hunter.
More moves could be on the way as well depending on what they decide to do with potential extensions of Harrison Smith and (doubtful but still possible) Kirk Cousins. There is also the issue of Anthony Barr not wanting to restructure his contract while being owed nearly $12.5 million in 2021. The most interesting part of this Vikings offseason will probably occur from April 29th to May 1st when we find out what the team decides to do in the draft, but there is certainly a road where they make some key free agent signings.