UNOFFICIAL Salary Cap Thread

[vince]

I haven’t seen anything on the Packers’ 2011 salary cap situation, so I thought I’d put it together as best as I could to get an idea of where they stand currently.

Here’s what Rotoworld has as far as current Packer salaries for everyone on the 2010 team and/or currently under contract. http://www.rotoworld.com/teams/contr...y-packers?rw=1

I've attached an image of the spreadsheet that reflects the rotoworld info. I tried to copy and paste the data and use the CODE functionality, but it doesn't line up properly and I'm not sure how to get it to do so. An image of the spreadsheet (with those not currently under contract and/or not expected to count against the cap hidden) is below.

Some notes:

• I’ve read that the salary cap is expected to be right around $140 mil. (EDIT: As Joe pointed out, Andrew Brandt has estimated that $19-20 mil will be allocated to non-salary cap player benefits, reducing the estimated cap to $121 mil.)
• I think most of the cuts I’ve projected are pretty safe, with the possible exception of 1 out of Chillar, Barnett and Poppinga.
• After last year’s uncapped year, I have no dead cap space allocated, which may not be accurate.
• I’m assuming all of Hawk and Bishop’s signing bonuses go into 2011, which I don’t know about.
• I projected the draft cap to be $10 mil, which I pulled completely out of my ass. If anyone has a better idea, I'd appreciate it.
• After projected cuts, the Packers cap number stands at only about $100 mil, which leaves about $20 mil under the expected 2011 cap.
• Some of the free agents (Jenkins, Colledge, Jones, Crosby, Kuhn, Swain, Bigby, Havner, Jackson, Smith, Spitz) will likely replace some of the guys currently under contract, so this is obviously going to change.
• This is strictly from Rotoworld, so if anyone as any additional data/info that can correct any errors here, I’d appreciate it.

Much of that space will be eaten up quickly, if Thompson chooses to re-sign even 2 or 3 of the free-agents-to-be.

[vince]

[Joemailman]

Keep in mind though that the salary cap could be slightly lower than the 127 million it was in 2009:
http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/...of-a-deal.html

Using a present revenue total of $9.3 billion, 48% of that number would result in a Player allocation of $4.464 billion or a team Cap starting in 2011 of just under $140 million. The key would be how much of that number is allocated to salaries and how much to benefits. My sense is the player cost allocation may be around $121 million per team with the other $19-20 million toward benefits.

[Lurker64]

I'm not so sure Harrell gets cut immediately. Keeping him is actually pretty cheap, and (IIRC) due to bonus escalation when you cut him and the cost of replacing with a veteran minimum salary, it's actually cheaper to keep Harrell than to cut him.

So I think that pretty much guarantees that Harrell makes it to training camp, though he may not make it out.

[vince]

Keep in mind though that the salary cap could be slightly lower than the 127 million it was in 2009:
http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/...of-a-deal.html

Using a present revenue total of $9.3 billion, 48% of that number would result in a Player allocation of $4.464 billion or a team Cap starting in 2011 of just under $140 million. The key would be how much of that number is allocated to salaries and how much to benefits. My sense is the player cost allocation may be around $121 million per team with the other $19-20 million toward benefits.

Aaah, I missed that important point. Thanks Joe. I updated the spreadsheet to reflect a cap of $121 mil as Brandt has estimated.

[vince]

Another note: There are 53 players currently under contract listed. I have 12 guys under contract getting cut and there are 10 draftees/UDFA spots which would bring the cap number to 51. I believe that is the number of players that actually are counted under the cap under the old rules.

[vince]

I'm not so sure Harrell gets cut immediately. Keeping him is actually pretty cheap, and (IIRC) due to bonus escalation when you cut him and the cost of replacing with a veteran minimum salary, it's actually cheaper to keep Harrell than to cut him.

So I think that pretty much guarantees that Harrell makes it to training camp, though he may not make it out.

I can't see how they can take a gamble on Harrell taking up a roster spot after barely playing any football for the last 5 years. Unless he absolutely tears it up in camp (which is hard to foresee given his time off the field), I think they'll have to go with some combo of Green/Wilson/Guy/Wynn as backups to Pickett/Raji/Neal. I've been wrong before though...

[Lurker64]

I can't see how they can take a gamble on Harrell taking up a roster spot after barely playing any football for the last 5 years. Unless he absolutely tears it up in camp (which is hard to foresee given his time off the field), I think they'll have to go with some combo of Green/Wilson/Guy/Wynn as backups to Pickett/Raji/Neal. I've been wrong before though...

I think that Pickett, Raji, Wilson, and Neal are safe. Green is safe unless he shows up hilariously fat and lazy. That leaves Guy/Wynn/Harrell to compete for one spot (which is the "splits the healthy scratch time with Green" spot.) L. Guy is almost certainly destined to hit the PS, so it's down to Harrell and Wynn for the last spot and they already cut Wynn once during TC. No way we're keeping more than six DL on the roster, so I think Harrell has at least earned a shot to compete for a roster spot (unless he retires). He's cheap, and we're only overstocked at that position by two, so I sincerely doubt he gets cut before camp. It's probably a serious uphill battle for him to actually make the roster, but the economics of the situation mean that you give him that shot.

[vince]

I can buy all of that.

[vince]

Assuming this is at least in the ballpark, with approximately $20 mil under the cap, I can't see Thompson signing any of Jenkins, Colledge, Jones the the kind of contract they'll be wanting. I could see them signing Crosby, Kuhn, Swain, and Smith/Bigby (only one of whom would make the team) make the team) to contracts. None of those contracts would break the bank and would replace contracts already accounted for plus $5 mil or so. That would leave $15 mil to get some guys re-upped who will be free agents after this season. Finley and Sitton would have to be the priorities I'd think.

[Brando19]

Wow...Bishop makes more than Rodgers.

[Tarlam!]

Wow...Bishop makes more than Rodgers.

I didn't check the fine print but that that can't include bonuses etc, can it? At any rate, if Rodgers continues the way he's started I can see him one day having the richest contract in the NFL.

Oh he's a loyal trooper and after M3 and TT basically fired #4 and stuck with #12 they will have won his heart and soul, but, it is a business. Add an MVP or 2 and his price skyrockets.

[Brando19]

I didn't check the fine print but that that can't include bonuses etc, can it? At any rate, if Rodgers continues the way he's started I can see him one day having the richest contract in the NFL.

Oh he's a loyal trooper and after M3 and TT basically fired #4 and stuck with #12 they will have won his heart and soul, but, it is a business. Add an MVP or 2 and his price skyrockets.

Yes, that includes bonuses. You're right, though. Rodgers will be the highest paid player in the NFL if he repeats next year what he did this year.

[Lurker64]

Wow...Bishop makes more than Rodgers.

The total value, and average yearly value of their contracts are very different though and Rodgers wins both of those. NFL contracts written with the benefit of foresight are generally structured where you get paid a lot at the beginning (where Bishop is), not so much in the middle (where Rodgers is), and a lot at the end (to encourage extension talks).

Aaron's contract is just under $11m/year, it's just he doesn't get the same every year. For cap purposes some years are very high, and some are very low.

[Guiness]

That's a big smokin' number for Hawk at the top of the list.

Have to think that gets negotiated down to something more reasonable, although after his performance after Barnett got hurt, it's no longer a slam dunk that they cut him.

He might even get paid that money and extended if they don't need the money elsewhere, making him cheaper for the next 5 years or so.