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THE 2021 SALARY CAP

CloakNNNdagger

Hall of Fame
You'll see a lot of predictions re. next year's salary cap............but bottom line, until at least Feb, it's all conjecture. Expect some animated discussions between the League and the NFLPA. Meanwhile, expect to see pieces like this.

***********************

Optimism emerges regarding 2021 salary cap
December 6, 2020, 10:19 AM EST

The negotiations that allowed the 2020 season to proceed included a commitment that the 2021 salary cap will be no lower than $175 million per team. The upcoming negotiations (and it’s negotiated every year) regarding the 2021 salary cap could result in a number significantly higher than $175 million.

Per a league source, the possibility that stadiums will be full for the 2021 season could prompt the league to not tie the hands of teams by dropping the salary cap by more than $23 million per team, from $198.2 million. Although the 2020 season will indeed result in lower revenue than usual, the potential of a return to something normal or close to it plus the coming TV deals may result in the league keeping the cap in the range of $195 million.

Time will tell what the league chooses to do. Although a projected cap typically is shared with all owners in December, the final decision isn’t made until late February or early March, through negotiations with the NFL Players Association. By then, the league will know more about whether the vaccine is being distributed and working properly, setting the stage for coffers being restored via ticket revenue in 2021.

The losses from 2020 will still be absorbed at some point. However, most teams won’t want to tie their hands next year with a dramatically reduced cap. Pushing losses to future years also helps players by reducing the possibility of the widespread termination of veteran contracts.
 

amazing80

Hall of Fame
Absorb the losses from the Owners pockets. There was plenty of stimulus to go around, including PPP and EIDL loans (part of which was forgivable). The GOV is gonna bail the economy out again. So take the loss on the business side and keep the cap the same. Don’t disrupt the make up of the league and teams. It will only hurt your brand in the long run.
 

Big Lou

Hall of Fame
The NFL brand has diminished for many reasons, everyone involved needs to take a haircut. Goodell is a horrible commissioner, owners are greedy, and the players turned off a huge portion of the fan base. They all deserve to take a hit in the wallet. Very few have done what’s best for the sport rather most are only interested in the here and now, although I guess that is human nature.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
Absorb the losses from the Owners pockets. There was plenty of stimulus to go around, including PPP and EIDL loans (part of which was forgivable). The GOV is gonna bail the economy out again. So take the loss on the business side and keep the cap the same. Don’t disrupt the make up of the league and teams. It will only hurt your brand in the long run.
People who own businesses aren't in it to lose $$$$.

Players are going to have to live with making less $$$$ for a while.

The consequences of the Chinese putting a plague on our country followed by where the players in all sports stand on social issues. I kind of respect the players for their stance.

BTW, The NFL/Direct TV thinks fans care about them like they did 5 yrs ago and that's just not the case in today's environment.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
The NFL brand has diminished for many reasons, everyone involved needs to take a haircut. Goodell is a horrible commissioner, owners are greedy, and the players turned off a huge portion of the fan base. They all deserve to take a hit in the wallet. Very few have done what’s best for the sport rather most are only interested in the here and now, although I guess that is human nature.
I've been saying this for yrs and the chickens are starting to come home to roost.
 

amazing80

Hall of Fame
People who own businesses aren't in it to lose $$$$.

Players are going to have to live with making less $$$$ for a while.

The consequences of the Chinese putting a plague on our country followed by where the players in all sports stand on social issues. I kind of respect the players for their stance.

BTW, The NFL/Direct TV thinks fans care about them like they did 5 yrs ago and that's just not the case in today's environment.
Again, there are things out there to minimize the loss a business suffers during COVID. It wouldn’t feel like a loss.

When you own a business you must make the occasional sacrifice to keep the brand remaining in tact.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
Again, there are things out there to minimize the loss a business suffers during COVID. It wouldn’t feel like a loss.

When you own a business you must make the occasional sacrifice to keep the brand remaining in tact.
I know a little bit about running a business and there's a reason owners want to eat all of the cap hit in one yr vs the players who want to spread out the cap hit over the next 3-4 yrs.
 

amazing80

Hall of Fame
I know a little bit about running a business and there's a reason owners want to eat all of the cap hit in one yr vs the players who want to spread out the cap hit over the next 3-4 yrs.
The NFL is the sports King right now. Hurting your brand, even for one year, would be dumb, especially when you have TV deals right around the corner. Eat it this next year and reap the benefits and money the following years.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
Players are not in it to give away $$$, either.


But you know nothing about running a multi-billion dollar business like the NFL.
I'm sure I have a pretty good understanding.

Agreed about the players not wanting to give away $$$$. But the owners aren't going to take the financial hit for the players activism. The players made their beds and the owners should let them lie in it. Kinda like when my business goes through a down period, no raises and maybe lay somebody off so I dont have to take the hit.
 

Lucky

Ride, Captain, Ride!
Staff member
I'm sure I have a pretty good understanding.
I'm sticking with you don't. Not unlike anyone else here. The article states that most teams don’t want a dramatically reduced cap next year. Obviously to most, they are looking at their future differently that you are with your business..
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
I'm sticking with you don't. Not unlike anyone else here. The article states that most teams don’t want a dramatically reduced cap next year. Obviously to most, they are looking at their future differently that you are with your business..
We will see,

The cap is going to drop by about 10%.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
I'm sticking with you don't. Not unlike anyone else here. The article states that most teams don’t want a dramatically reduced cap next year. Obviously to most, they are looking at their future differently that you are with your business..
You can stick with that all you want but the owners and NFLPA already agreed to spread the losses over a 4 year period starting next year.

The league is losing about a third of their revenue which equates to about $5.67B. That's right around $177m per team and the owners aren't going to eat those losses alone. The players will share in those losses - mainly the guys in the middle of the salary spectrum. Stars are going to get theirs , the guys making the minimum are still going to get the minimum.
 

Mr teX

Hall of Fame
The owners nor the players are taking any losses next year & The cap isn’t going down; players won’t allow that. if anything, I see the nfl, players and owners just kicking the can down the road for 2021 and passing any losses they’ve taken this year onto the fans as they hope for a return to baseline in 2022. But the easing of losses from this year will start next year when they make the controversial decision to allow fans back into stadiums full bore in 2021; especially with these vaccines coming online this month. In addition to this, Tickets will cost a few bucks more.....Beer and food a few bucks more. Some teams have already allowed companies to advertise on their jerseys..expect that to increase next year.

Cap wont be dropped...but it’s surely wont be going up either.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
The owners nor the players are taking any losses next year & The cap isn’t going down; players won’t allow that. if anything, I see the nfl, players and owners just kicking the can down the road for 2021 and passing any losses they’ve taken this year onto the fans as they hope for a return to baseline in 2022. But the easing of losses from this year will start next year when they make the controversial decision to allow fans back into stadiums full bore in 2021; especially with these vaccines coming online this month. In addition to this, Tickets will cost a few bucks more.....Beer and food a few bucks more. Some teams have already allowed companies to advertise on their jerseys..expect that to increase next year.

Cap wont be dropped...but it’s surely wont be going up either.

The players don't have a choice in the cap going down or not , the cap is dictated by revenue , revenue goes down so does the cap.
The players , collectively are guaranteed a set percentage of revenue and that's how the cap is calculated.

Revenue is down one third.

So the cap doesn't also drop by a similar amount , the NFLPA and owners have already agreed to spread the losses over a 4 year period beginning next season.

NFL, NFLPA reach agreement on COVID-19 adjustments to CBA

Financially, the league will spread the impact of any 2020 revenue shortfall due to the pandemic over four years beginning in 2021. The salary cap will be at least $175 million in 2021, while the 2020 cap of $198.2 million remains unchanged. The two sides were able to reach an agreement after owners raised the minimum cap for 2021 from $165 million to $175 million and dropped their request for an $8 million reduction in cap for 2020, per Pelissero.
In the event that financial losses are not as great as anticipated, the cap will be higher in 2021 than $175 million. Setting a floor simply provides clubs with a baseline with which they can plan financially.
 

Thorn

Dirty Old Man
Just a question here, but does the NFL refund the ticket prices to their games you can't attend? I'm not talking about the PSLs, but the purchase price of the season tickets themselves.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
Just a question here, but does the NFL refund the ticket prices to their games you can't attend? I'm not talking about the PSLs, but the purchase price of the season tickets themselves.
I believe they did offer refunds - or at least some teams did.

@StarStruck might be the one to answer this one.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
You can stick with that all you want but the owners and NFLPA already agreed to spread the losses over a 4 year period starting next year.

The league is losing about a third of their revenue which equates to about $5.67B. That's right around $177m per team and the owners aren't going to eat those losses alone. The players will share in those losses - mainly the guys in the middle of the salary spectrum. Stars are going to get theirs , the guys making the minimum are still going to get the minimum.
Quoted for truth
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
The owners nor the players are taking any losses next year & The cap isn’t going down; players won’t allow that. if anything, I see the nfl, players and owners just kicking the can down the road for 2021 and passing any losses they’ve taken this year onto the fans as they hope for a return to baseline in 2022. But the easing of losses from this year will start next year when they make the controversial decision to allow fans back into stadiums full bore in 2021; especially with these vaccines coming online this month. In addition to this, Tickets will cost a few bucks more.....Beer and food a few bucks more. Some teams have already allowed companies to advertise on their jerseys..expect that to increase next year.

Cap wont be dropped...but it’s surely wont be going up either.
This would be a mistake by the owners.

One I dont anticipate them making in these Covid times we live.
 

StarStruck

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
I opted to sit out this year for both teams. I opted refund instead of rolling payment to next season which did not affect my PSLs, and I did receive the refund about two weeks after expressing my decision.

I later bought three sets of tickets for the Cowboys games. Since I have always gone to games for Thanksgiving I took chance to secure two which were very limited since the Cowboys sold most of their available seats in 4 or 6 seat pods. I later decided not to go to the Thanksgiving game and placed my tickets on SeatGeek, who handles our season tickets. The tickets sold within 20 minutes, but the sale was pending if the game was played. My best guess is since I bought the tickets through my account that any cancellations would be refunded.

I believe I read that tickets sold on the secondary market with the exception of Ticket Master would get credit to future events instead of a refund.
 
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OptimisticTexan

2024 / Rebuilding Block 4 After Playoffs / Texans
There is a lot of guys who can be cut for little to no cap hit. I think a good GM, who Is cap savvy, will be able to work things out just fine. The key is finding talent that fits our new offensive and defensive schemes.
Check out my post in the "If I were the GM". I had some ideas there.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
That agreement was for the cap to be set at a minimum of $175M, and like the article in the first post says the final number won't be fully negotiated for a few more months with the owners eyes set on new tv broadcast money and butts in seats for next season to normalize things.
Yeah , Normalize has to happen or there is "further economic damage" which means the cap drops even more down the line.

The "Floor" was set for next year at 175m .... Each owner is taking about 178m in losses and they'll expect the players to eat half of that over the next 4 years or about 22.5m per year over that stretch - Assuming things are back to normal for 21 and beyond.

The vaccine has been rolled out in Europe and shouldn't be long before its rolled out here in the early part of 2021 which should limit further financial damage and get us back to some sense of normalcy for the 21 season.

My belief is that the cap doesn't decline a whole heck of a lot this year to next but that the cap doesn't rise much either over that 4 year window for the owners to recoup their losses while the players eat their share of those losses.

This years cap was roughly 210m and the Texans carried over 8.75m in roll over from last year.

My expectation is that next years adjusted cap is somewhere around 195m - above the floor in the agreement by ~20m so but lacking any growth at all the Texans adjusted cap in that scenario would come in at ~202m , about 16m short of this years.

Not as bad as we expected but still going to make life difficult for quite a few teams.
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
There is a lot of guys who can be cut for little to no cap hit. I think a good GM, who Is cap savvy, will be able to work things out just fine. The key is finding talent that fits our new offensive and defensive schemes.
If only it were as easy as that. The Texans still have to field a football team in 2021, so a considerable amount of any cap savings will be a wash when FAs (either the Texans own or another teams) are signed to 2021 contracts. I have fingers, toes, arms legs and eyes crossed hoping the Texans can land a GM that is both cap and talent savvy. Having no 1st or 2nd round draft pick is really going to put a higher than normal emphasis on mid-round picks.
The big issue, to me, is what are the Texans going to do with Watt and Fuller?
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
If only it were as easy as that. The Texans still have to field a football team in 2021, so a considerable amount of any cap savings will be a wash when FAs (either the Texans own or another teams) are signed to 2021 contracts. I have fingers, toes, arms legs and eyes crossed hoping the Texans can land a GM that is both cap and talent savvy. Having no 1st or 2nd round draft pick is really going to put a higher than normal emphasis on mid-round picks.
I did some number crunching in another thread , it's not going to be all that difficult for the Texans to make some space.

Watt
McKinney
Martin
David Johnson
Cooks

That gets you to about $45m in practical space with the cap around 195 unadjusted and 22 open roster spots.

You definitely need a good RB and Center off the top as well as CB(maybe2?) , WR and a pass rusher. I'm cool with Adams in the middle for next year on the cheap replacing BMac.

You don't get any of the top tier FA's but you can get multiple from the mid tier as that is the group who is going to take the biggest financial hit - Stars will get paid and minimums will get the minimum , guys in the mid tier are forced to take less as the money dries up around the league. RB and Center would take top priority .... fix that running game.
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
I did some number crunching in another thread , it's not going to be all that difficult for the Texans to make some space.

Watt
McKinney
Martin
David Johnson
Cooks

That gets you to about $45m in practical space with the cap around 195 unadjusted and 22 open roster spots.

You definitely need a good RB and Center off the top as well as CB(maybe2?) , WR and a pass rusher. I'm cool with Adams in the middle for next year on the cheap replacing BMac.

You don't get any of the top tier FA's but you can get multiple from the mid tier as that is the group who is going to take the biggest financial hit - Stars will get paid and minimums will get the minimum , guys in the mid tier are forced to take less as the money dries up around the league. RB and Center would take top priority .... fix that running game.
I'm not a fan of being a major player in FA so I'm very OK with seeing what is available in the mid tiers. $45M for 22 roster spots means a lot of lower tier FAs the way I see it. If it takes 2 years to retool from the mess OB left, then I'm cool with that. I want to see a return to competent and consistently competitive football first and foremost.
 

JB

Innocent Bystander
Contributor's Club
I did some number crunching in another thread , it's not going to be all that difficult for the Texans to make some space.

Watt
McKinney
Martin
David Johnson
Cooks

That gets you to about $45m in practical space with the cap around 195 unadjusted and 22 open roster spots.

You definitely need a good RB and Center off the top as well as CB(maybe2?) , WR and a pass rusher. I'm cool with Adams in the middle for next year on the cheap replacing BMac.

You don't get any of the top tier FA's but you can get multiple from the mid tier as that is the group who is going to take the biggest financial hit - Stars will get paid and minimums will get the minimum , guys in the mid tier are forced to take less as the money dries up around the league. RB and Center would take top priority .... fix that running game.
I think you can get your RB in the draft if no quality FA available... probably more impact than any other position
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
I'm not a fan of being a major player in FA so I'm very OK with seeing what is available in the mid tiers. $45M for 22 roster spots means a lot of lower tier FAs the way I see it. If it takes 2 years to retool from the mess OB left, then I'm cool with that. I want to see a return to competent and consistently competitive football first and foremost.
Have they not been consistently competitive until this yr?
 

badboy

Hall of Fame
I think we eight draft picks w/o any known comps. All need to make roster with a handful of cheap UDFAs and a few cheap vet FAs. The focus of significance for any player should be on the future. 2021 will be a reworking of roster. A center and RB would greatly improve the future including the productivity of Watson. Hansen could be the wide receiver addition for 2021 if he continues as he did against the Colts. Starting running back, cornerback and a center in the first three picks should really be productive.
 

OptimisticTexan

2024 / Rebuilding Block 4 After Playoffs / Texans
I think we eight draft picks w/o any known comps. All need to make roster with a handful of cheap UDFAs and a few cheap vet FAs. The focus of significance for any player should be on the future. 2021 will be a reworking of roster. A center and RB would greatly improve the future including the productivity of Watson. Hansen could be the wide receiver addition for 2021 if he continues as he did against the Colts. Starting running back, cornerback and a center in the first three picks should really be productive.
I made some big cuts in my post (If I were GM) and those cuts netted a 64M+ return. If the cap hits 200M in 2021....Texans should still make those trade/cuts. I'm good with taking former solid players on 1-2 year prove-it type of deals at no more than 2-3M a season. If any of these players are putting together a solid comeback type of season.....trade them before the deadline for additional picks in 2022. Of course that plan could be pushed aside if the Texans are solid contenders and appear to have a team capable of going deep into the playoffs.
 
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DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Have they not been consistently competitive until this yr?
They have been consistently competitive against the lower 3rd of the NFL, occasionally competitive against the middle 3rd and rarely competitive against the upper 3rd. That includes this year. That is how they ended up with a .520 winning percentage in a perennially bad division and regularly bounced out of the playoffs without making too much of a fuss at all under Bill O'Brien.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
They have been consistently competitive against the lower 3rd of the NFL, occasionally competitive against the middle 3rd and rarely competitive against the upper 3rd. That includes this year. That is how they ended up with a .520 winning percentage in a perennially bad division and regularly bounced out of the playoffs without making too much of a fuss at all under Bill O'Brien.
Quoted for truth

There's also a lack of talent on the roster.

Of course BOB has alot to do with the lack of talent. What bothers me more than anything is the ridiculous contract extensions to guys like N.Martin/Mercilus/Cunningham/Murray etc... Not to mention BOB and his staff not being able to develop talent.
 

thunderkyss

Just win baby!!!
Staff member
Contributor's Club
If it takes 2 years to retool from the mess OB left, then I'm cool with that. I want to see a return to competent and consistently competitive football first and foremost.
How would we know?

Hear me out. When they fired Capers I had no idea how long it was going to take, just to stop the losing. But drafting Mario over a RB & a QB gave me hope.

Still it 3 seasons before our first winning season 5 before our first playoff berth.

Did it have to take so long?

When we finally let him go, I honestly thought we were 2 or 3 years from a Super Bowl. Yeah, I was wrong. I felt I was the minute the college coach started acting like a college coach.

Water under the bridge.

If we trade away our 2022 picks to move up in 2021, if we spend every dime with no rollover for 2022... I'm going to know 2 years is a pipe dream.
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
How would we know?

Hear me out. When they fired Capers I had no idea how long it was going to take, just to stop the losing. But drafting Mario over a RB & a QB gave me hope.

Still it 3 seasons before our first winning season 5 before our first playoff berth.

Did it have to take so long?

When we finally let him go, I honestly thought we were 2 or 3 years from a Super Bowl. Yeah, I was wrong. I felt I was the minute the college coach started acting like a college coach.

Water under the bridge.

If we trade away our 2022 picks to move up in 2021, if we spend every dime with no rollover for 2022... I'm going to know 2 years is a pipe dream.
I was posting about more of an ideal world, getting the right GM/HC with a full compliment of draft picks available. 2021 will be what it is in FA and the draft. Not a lot of cap space or draft picks. 2022 should bring about a full compliment of draft picks and the cap should be getting back under control by then. I guess I'm seeing the Texans going through more of a retooling effort than an all out rebuild.
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
Yeah....


Unless they buc it up. That's what I'm saying.
If the new regime continues to rob Peter to pay Paul, then all bets are off and we're in for more of the same BS we've dealt been dealing with for the last 1.5 years.
My hope is that the new regime sees the mess the Texans are in for what it is, takes 2021 for what it is and plans on making 2022 the year where they can really make hay. The last thing the Texans or us fans need is a GM and/or HC who says they can turn the Texans into a legitimate contender in 2021 after inheriting the mess OB left them.
 

Corrosion

Idealist
Staff member
If the new regime continues to rob Peter to pay Paul, then all bets are off and we're in for more of the same BS we've dealt been dealing with for the last 1.5 years.
My hope is that the new regime sees the mess the Texans are in for what it is, takes 2021 for what it is and plans on making 2022 the year where they can really make hay. The last thing the Texans or us fans need is a GM and/or HC who says they can turn the Texans into a legitimate contender in 2021 after inheriting the mess OB left them.
I find it hard to believe that Cal is gonna buy that in the interview process for a GM - You are in cap hell and its going to take a year to fix it.

Not when Cal believes the band rocks.

He's going to want to hear that this new GM he's about to hire can this thing around immediately , however unrealistic that is.

That's not saying I disagree with taking 21 to clear the cap and set up for the future , that's the exactly what I'd be looking to do - clearing dead weight like Da. Johnson , Mercilus , Martin , McKinney and a few others and going into 22 with as much draft capital and usable cap space as possible.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
I find it hard to believe that Cal is gonna buy that in the interview process for a GM - You are in cap hell and its going to take a year to fix it.

Not when Cal believes the band rocks.

He's going to want to hear that this new GM he's about to hire can this thing around immediately , however unrealistic that is.

That's not saying I disagree with taking 21 to clear the cap and set up for the future , that's the exactly what I'd be looking to do - clearing dead weight like Da. Johnson , Mercilus , Martin , McKinney and a few others and going into 22 with as much draft capital and usable cap space as possible.
Looks like a plan to me.
 

Texian

Hall of Fame
I did some number crunching in another thread , it's not going to be all that difficult for the Texans to make some space.

Watt
McKinney
Martin
David Johnson
Cooks

That gets you to about $45m in practical space with the cap around 195 unadjusted and 22 open roster spots.

You definitely need a good RB and Center off the top as well as CB(maybe2?) , WR and a pass rusher. I'm cool with Adams in the middle for next year on the cheap replacing BMac.

You don't get any of the top tier FA's but you can get multiple from the mid tier as that is the group who is going to take the biggest financial hit - Stars will get paid and minimums will get the minimum , guys in the mid tier are forced to take less as the money dries up around the league. RB and Center would take top priority .... fix that running game.
Looks like the 32nd defense in 2021. Not a bad thing. Might as well improve the 2022 draft position while fixing the cap. : )
 

DocBar

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
I find it hard to believe that Cal is gonna buy that in the interview process for a GM - You are in cap hell and its going to take a year to fix it.

Not when Cal believes the band rocks.

He's going to want to hear that this new GM he's about to hire can this thing around immediately , however unrealistic that is.

That's not saying I disagree with taking 21 to clear the cap and set up for the future , that's the exactly what I'd be looking to do - clearing dead weight like Da. Johnson , Mercilus , Martin , McKinney and a few others and going into 22 with as much draft capital and usable cap space as possible.
The realist in me can easily agree with what you're saying. I guess I'm at a place where I'm hoping for the best and giving Cal the benefit of the doubt until he proves otherwise.
I'm not nearly as jaded as some fans are towards ownership. Some fans on here would have Cal changing GM/HC after every game/FA lost or miss on a draft pick.
 
I did some number crunching in another thread , it's not going to be all that difficult for the Texans to make some space.

Watt
McKinney
Martin
David Johnson
Cooks

That gets you to about $45m in practical space with the cap around 195 unadjusted and 22 open roster spots.
Personally - the easy 5 to get rid of are: McKinney, Martin, David Johnson, Duke Johnson & Brandon Dunn. ALL hugely underperform their 2021 cap numbers with minimum dead cap values. Those 5 get you back $28.55 million, to get down to $165M.

After that you've got 3 tough choices that yield a lot of savings, but are also very good players at positions of need, and you clearly get much worse before you get better:
  1. Cooks is probably the easiest one, for another $12M, but we probably can't resign Fuller, so this will take out our top-2 WRs...which leaves Cobb, Coutee, Coulter & Hansen.
  2. Watt is still rated #6 of 110 Edge Rushers (PFF), where we're weak. I'd leave this up to him as to stay or go. It's a big number at $17.5 million, but some fans would revolt.
  3. Roby is our only decent cornerback, at one of our weakest positions, but would generate $8.25M in savings. I'd keep him, unless we're tanking.
On O, the O-Line is terrible, but is generally young and might improve if Devlin is replaced. WR depth is worrisome if we lose both Fuller and Cooks, but we may have no choice due to cap problems. We also need new RBs, but Johnson & Johnson were garbage, so we will get much cheaper without getting worse.

On D, we can't stop the run, generate much of a pass rush, or cover very well. Not much quality or depth. Roby and Watt are easily the two best players, and both are EXPENSIVE. It's not clear any other starter on defense would start for a good defense.

There are just too many gaps to fill with only 3rd to 7th rounders plus free agents.
The new GM needs to be a bargain hunting wizard.
 

welsh texan

You may say I’m a dreamer but I’m not the only one
Personally - the easy 5 to get rid of are: McKinney, Martin, David Johnson, Duke Johnson & Brandon Dunn. ALL hugely underperform their 2021 cap numbers with minimum dead cap values. Those 5 get you back $28.55 million, to get down to $165M.

After that you've got 3 tough choices that yield a lot of savings, but are also very good players at positions of need, and you clearly get much worse before you get better:
  1. Cooks is probably the easiest one, for another $12M, but we probably can't resign Fuller, so this will take out our top-2 WRs...which leaves Cobb, Coutee, Coulter & Hansen.
  2. Watt is still rated #6 of 110 Edge Rushers (PFF), where we're weak. I'd leave this up to him as to stay or go. It's a big number at $17.5 million, but some fans would revolt.
  3. Roby is our only decent cornerback, at one of our weakest positions, but would generate $8.25M in savings. I'd keep him, unless we're tanking.
On O, the O-Line is terrible, but is generally young and might improve if Devlin is replaced. WR depth is worrisome if we lose both Fuller and Cooks, but we may have no choice due to cap problems. We also need new RBs, but Johnson & Johnson were garbage, so we will get much cheaper without getting worse.

On D, we can't stop the run, generate much of a pass rush, or cover very well. Not much quality or depth. Roby and Watt are easily the two best players, and both are EXPENSIVE. It's not clear any other starter on defense would start for a good defense.

There are just too many gaps to fill with only 3rd to 7th rounders plus free agents.
The new GM needs to be a bargain hunting wizard.
All agreed except Roby is on a reasonable deal. If he hung on to a few more PD’s for INTs he’d be really good.
It was insinuated a few weeks back that he may not be a good locker room guy, and if we do choose to tank (which I think is very unlikely), maybe you get rid of him, otherwise he’d be someone who you’d like to eventually draft a really good rookie alongside to turn him into your CB2 and eventually render him unnecessary.

It is sad that Lonnie, Reid and Conley have been so poor/unavailable this season. The DBs looked like it should have been a strength on this team.
 
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