NFL teams can carry unused cap space to next year (1 Viewer)

[GregR]

In the past CBA, some NFL teams took advantage of salary cap loopholes to carry over unused cap room from one year to the next. A common way of doing this was to write a player a new bonus that the system deemed likely to be earned, so charged against the current cap. But when the bonus conditions were not met, the next year the cap space would be refunded and added to the new year's cap.The new CBA got rid of the need to use the loopholes to do so. Now teams just submit to the league how much unused cap space, if any, they wish to carry over to the next year. I don't know of any negatives to doing so.http://www.kcchiefs.com/news/article-2/Chiefs-activate-salary-cap-carry-over-clause/e1174080-a8d2-4608-885a-35119b2a80bb

Hunt is referring to Page 96 of the new CBA, which reads… “(v) Carrying Over Room. A Club may “carry over” Room from one League Year to the following League Year by submitting notice in writing signed by the owner to the NFL no later than fourteen (14) days prior to the start of the new League Year indicating the maximum amount of Room that the Club wishes to carry over. The NFL shall promptly provide a copy of any such notice to the NFLPA. The amount of Room carried over will be adjusted downward based on the final Room available after the year-end reconciliation.”Essentially, the clause means that the team will receive an extra $20 million toward the 2012 cap number, which has yet to be set.

 

[Donnybrook]

Remaining 2011 cap space, by team: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/02/12/remaining-2011-cap-space-by-team/

 

[Riversco]

Remaining 2011 cap space, by team: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/02/12/remaining-2011-cap-space-by-team/

So what are the Rams spending all their money on?

 

[Touchdown There]

Remaining 2011 cap space, by team: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/02/12/remaining-2011-cap-space-by-team/

I would be interested to know (remaining 2011 cap space)+(amount under/over expected in 2012). Wouldn't this give an approximate budget in 2012 for each team?

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

Remaining 2011 cap space, by team: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/02/12/remaining-2011-cap-space-by-team/

I would be interested to know (remaining 2011 cap space)+(amount under/over expected in 2012). Wouldn't this give an approximate budget in 2012 for each team?

no, because not every team may choose to carry cap.some teams don't actually want to spend money.

 

[Donnybrook]

I know that Miami is the front runner for Matt Flynn in free agency but with all that unused cap the Jags could easily afford him.

 

[GregR]

Remaining 2011 cap space, by team: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/02/12/remaining-2011-cap-space-by-team/

I would be interested to know (remaining 2011 cap space)+(amount under/over expected in 2012). Wouldn't this give an approximate budget in 2012 for each team?

no, because not every team may choose to carry cap.some teams don't actually want to spend money.

This (the implication that carrying over increases the amount of money that must be spent) is something I've struggled with to tell if it is the case. After reading through parts of the CBA I don't think it's the case, but I'm far from certain.Teams have to spend a minimum of 89% of the Salary Cap. So if the Carry Over increases the Salary Cap I would figure they would indeed have to pay more.

However the language for carrying over says they are carrying over "Room", not "Salary Cap". The CBA defines Room as "the extent to which a Team’s then-current Team Salary is less than the Salary Cap". No where in the section on carrying over does it even use the words Salary Cap.

As a layman, that reads to me this is adjustment is not added into the Salary Cap itself, which I assume would mean it would not cause a change in the team's minimum salary floor. But again, far from certain.

 

[GregR]

Tweeted Andrew Brandt asking if carrying over the cap room would increase a team's cap floor. He said it doesn't.

So there isn't a financial reason to not carry money over. Though, limiting fan backlash if you plan to be cheap could be an incentive to not do so. Easier to be seen as $10m under every year for 4 years, than it is to be $40m under that 4th year because you kept carrying cap room over.

 

[Touchdown There]

So let's say that the 2012 cap number is 125 million. The 89% floor figure comes out to 111.25 million for all teams. Each team will have a different sized wallet for free agents and that is the interesting information.

As an example, the Buccaneers have $25.05 million on their remaining 2011 cap space. They are projected to be 26.1 million under the 2012 cap (125 cap - 98.9 projected = 26.1 million). All teams can "borrow" 2 million against future years, if needed.

The max number for the Bucs would then be: 125 mil + 25.05 mil + 2 mil = 157.05 mil

The expected max free agent budget is: 25.05 mil + 26.1 mil +2 = 53.15 mil

Floor (required to spend): 111.25 mil

I think some teams have a lot of money in their free agent budget and others have little to none.

 

[SacramentoBob]

I miss the good ole days of the Pats exploiting this loophole heavily.

 

[GregR]

According to Jason Cole, the only teams who didn't carry money over were Houston and San Diego, and that was because the cap room they had left was used up by incentives, so they didn't have any to carry.

 

[flapgreen]

There are so many factors that go into the cap at this point in the offseason. Most of these numbers don't mean much.

 

[MindCrime]

The cap floor doesn't take affect until 2013.