Every team has more room to operate, but the Steelers benefit the most from the higher salary cap figure for one very important reason.
With the NFL salary ceiling surging to $255.4 million on Friday, all teams will have more leeway than the $242.5 million amount that was first reported. Based on what they did throughout the league, it doesn’t appear like most teams were surprised by that figure. In order to become cap-compliant, the Steelers, in particular, released Pressley Harvin III, Chuks Okorafor, and Mitch Trubisky early.
Based on an analysis by Steelers Now, the team now has almost $9 million in cap space after Mason Cole was released. They will have to pay workout bonuses, sign their rookie class, sign a practice squad, account for players on injured reserve, account for the 52nd and 53rd players on the roster, and leave room for in-season signings prior to the 2024 regular season starting. The Steelers will probably need to release an additional $10.5 million or more from their 2024 salary limit obligations.
The organization can terminate, renegotiate, or extend the contracts of a number of veteran players, including Alex Highsmith, Larry Ogunjobi, Patrick Peterson, Cam Heyward, and Allen Robinson II, in order to save money.
Based on an analysis by Steelers Now, the team now has almost $9 million in cap space after Mason Cole was released. They will have to pay workout bonuses, sign their rookie class, sign a practice squad, account for players on injured reserve, account for the 52nd and 53rd players on the roster, and leave room for in-season signings prior to the 2024 regular season starting.
The Steelers will probably need to release an additional $10.5 million or more from their 2024 salary limit obligations.
The team can cut, restructure, or extend the contracts of a number of veteran players, including Alex Highsmith, Larry Ogunjobi, Patrick Peterson, Cam Heyward, Allen Robinson II, Minkah Fitzpatrick, and Patrick Peterson, in order to reach those savings.
However, when you look at the figures for teams, the Steelers are still among the bottom 10 in terms of cap room. There’s more room for every organization today, and once players realize they have more room to work with as well, contracts will probably increase. However, the clubs with superstar contracts already stashed away are the ones who actually win this tournament. In the case of the Steelers, having T.J. Watt, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Alex Highsmith, and others under contract will look incredibly cheap this offseason. Those will start to look more like deals. Even though Highsmith’s deal is new, it won’t deteriorate significantly in relation to his worth over time.
Accept it as it comes, but the true lines will be met at that sharp increase in contract costs. The teams that have long-term contracts with superstars will profit the most. On the defensive end of the ball, the Steelers are among the clubs who have its elite players under long-term contracts. They still have some decisions to make, but because those superstar contracts appear to be good values, the team should be able to acquire a couple players in free agency.
For example, Watt’s pay will be significantly less than it would have been if the contract had been signed in 2024. Although he had two years remaining on his contract, which could have cost up to $35 million, his annual salary was only about $27.5 million. Teams that see significant salary cap hikes like this one can win games like that.
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