Salary Cap for next year?

[SteelerMaine83]

Thanks for a realistic look at the Salary Cap mess we’ll be in, NB. Very easy to posit which FAs we’ll keep when you don’t understand the reality of where we are at.

Because of the expected drop in revenues, we will be over the cap by at least $10m or as much as about $25m (if it bottoms at $175m), with a whole bunch of FAs we’d like to keep (nevermind the fact we’ll also have to clear $5-7m for rookies). That means we will be cutting guys before we can even think about keeping guys.

On the bright side, we can actually save money on TJ’s cap hit (10m+) by signing him long term. If we signed him for 8 years at $176m ($22m a year), we could give him a signing bonus of $40m and a base of $1m, making his cap hit only $6m this year (saving $4k+) but giving him a $41m paycheck this year. Let’s face it—that’s a realistic price to keep him and a way to save a little cap space this year.

[Northern_Blitz]

Thanks for a realistic look at the Salary Cap mess we’ll be in, NB. Very easy to posit which FAs we’ll keep when you don’t understand the reality of where we are at.

Because of the expected drop in revenues, we will be over the cap by at least $10m or as much as about $25m (if it bottoms at $175m), with a whole bunch of FAs we’d like to keep (nevermind the fact we’ll also have to clear $5-7m for rookies). That means we will be cutting guys before we can even think about keeping guys.

On the bright side, we can actually save money on TJ’s cap hit (10m+) by signing him long term. If we signed him for 8 years at $176m ($22m a year), we could give him a signing bonus of $40m and a base of $1m, making his cap hit only $6m this year (saving $4k+) but giving him a $41m paycheck this year. Let’s face it—that’s a realistic price to keep him and a way to save a little cap space this year.

No problem. I had a feeling it was bad, but I wanted to at least get an idea. I wish the news was better.

I'm hoping that if the cap does drop (to say the floor of $175), the league and the PA will have guys under contract take a hit (maybe the same ~ 12.5% that a drop to the floor would represent). Otherwise, basically every team will be over the cap, we'll see an insane amount of cuts and anyone who's a UFA will bear the pain (while guys under contract will be fine).

I agree that there will be some extending and restructuring that we do. I don't exactly understand how that stuff works, so I didn't speculate here. Hoping to learn this off season. I think going into this season looked bad and Kahn and friends were able to dig us out with restructures and stuff. But Ben doesn't have any more years to kick the can to...

[NJ-STEELER]

With the cap dropping. We won’t be the only team in this type of situation.

For example the saints are actually worse off right now.
a few other good teams will have to make some cap cuts

I do wonder if they try to work out a deal since this season was played under a pandemic were fans weren’t allowed to attend.
Perhaps they try to go with a salary cap from revenues the year prior.

[Northern_Blitz]

With the cap dropping. We won’t be the only team in this type of situation.

For example the saints are actually worse off right now.
a few other good teams will have to make some cap cuts

I do wonder if they try to work out a deal since this season was played under a pandemic were fans weren’t allowed to attend.
Perhaps they try to go with a salary cap from revenues the year prior.

Just guessing, but I bet that they keep the cap constant this year. Then maybe keep it constant for X number of years until the owners are made whole for the loss they take on their ~ 50% of the revenue this year.

It kind of screws future players in favor of those playing now. But, future players don't get votes on amendments to the CBA.

[Steel Maniac]

With the cap dropping. We won’t be the only team in this type of situation.

For example the saints are actually worse off right now.
a few other good teams will have to make some cap cuts

I do wonder if they try to work out a deal since this season was played under a pandemic were fans weren’t allowed to attend.
Perhaps they try to go with a salary cap from revenues the year prior.

So true; they’ll be a lot of surprise cuts around the league.

[Sword]

No to Cam N.....No!!!!

[hawaiiansteel]

No to Cam N.....No!!!!

you don't think he looks good in black & gold?

[Sly]

As bad as the cap picture is for the Steelers for 2021, if it's any consolation there are three teams that are in worse shape than the Steelers. Here's a projection with both the $175 and $190M cap limits.
https://overthecap.com/looking-ahead-to-2021-salary-cap-space/