The NFL has finally announced the league-wide salary cap for the 2021 season. According to Ian Rapoport of The NFL Network, teams have been getting ready for a cap within the $180 million to $185 million range, and they officially get a $182.5 million salary cap to work within the upcoming campaign.
Teams were bracing for anything between $180M and $185M. The 2021 salary cap lands right in the middle. It will set off a tough few weeks for veterans. https://t.co/wjCvnLXw5I
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 10, 2021
With this determination, Tom Pelissero of The NFL Network also laid out the list of the franchise tag values set ahead of free agency based on the $182.5 million cap.
Final franchise tags values based on the $182.5 million salary cap: pic.twitter.com/xw1Ch1lKf0
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 10, 2021
NFL teams have already prepared themselves for a huge salary cap reduction, the first since its establishment in 1994. Like in most professional sports leagues, teams have structured their player contracts under the assumption that the cap would increase every year. But with these trying times and the massive dip in league revenue brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, the league has no choice but to reduce spending, which, unfortunately, includes a massive retraction in the salary cap.
From 2019 to 2020, the league saw a $10 million cap spike and expected a salary cap of around $208 million by the 2021 campaign. But with the circumstances, teams instead saw a $25 million swing as the cap settled at its current price. This huge turnaround in projections will undoubtedly affect the majority of teams and several players all over the league.
The New Orleans Saints already had a tricky cap situation even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world. Now, they are placed under a bigger spotlight, with the current circumstances placing them $57.7 million over the cap.
The 2021 off-season is about to take an even wilder turn with the salary cap in place and free agency just right around the corner.
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