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The New England Patriots didn't have much salary cap space to make meaningful roster improvements before the 2022 NFL season, and one of the reasons for that was they spent a ton of money in free agency the year before.
The 2023 offseason could see the Patriots again make a splash on free agents.
Rex Ryan lost a Patriots-Jets bet and paid up in hilarious fashionOverTheCap's 2023 projections have the Patriots with the third-most cap space in the league at $52.2 million. The Chicago Bears are No. 1 with an astounding $110.8 million of projected room under the cap.
2023 projected cap room [inc. carryover, $225M cap, rosters at 51 players]
Bears- $110.8M
— Jason_OTC [@Jason_OTC] November 6, 2022
Falcons- $61.6M
Patriots- $52.5M
Giants- $49.3M
Bengals- $42.7M
Seahawks- $40.3M
Texans- $39.5M
Ravens- $39.4M
Colts- $24.9M
Raiders- $20.6M
Lions- $16.8M
The Patriots' notable free agents after this season include running back Damien Harris, wide receivers Jakobi Meyers and Nelson Agholor, offensive tackle Isaiah Wynn, cornerback Jonathan Jones and special teams ace Matthew Slater.
Even if the Patriots re-sign some or all of these players, they should still have a good chunk of salary cap space to be a major force in free agency. They could use that cap space to address key positions on the roster that need talent and/or depth upgrades, such as wide receiver, left tackle, linebacker, etc.
It's better to address roster needs through the draft than free agency. It's a lot cheaper to build a winning roster that way. But if a team like the Patriots has a lot of cap space and a win-now mentality, it might as well use that space to its advantage, especially while the starting quarterback [Mac Jones] is on a rookie contract.
The New York Giants traded wide receiver Kadarius Toney to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for a pair of draft picks on Thursday. It also helped clear a little salary cap space for the cash-strapped team.
With Toney now in Kansas City, the Giants save $755,000 against the cap here in 2022. That brings their total cap space up to around $3.56 million. However, a replacement player on a minimum salary will cost $400,000, so the overall savings for this season are negligible.
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In 2023, the trade will save the Giants an additional $1.9 million but leave them with a dead cap hit of $3.668 million [currently the highest projected dead cap hit]. It will also save the Giants $2.53 million in 2024.
In addition to the salary cap savings, the Giants also picked up the aforementioned draft picks, bringing their total in the 2023 NFL draft to nine.
- 1st
- 2nd
- 3rd
- 3rd [compensatory, Chiefs]
- 4th
- 5th
- 6th [Chiefs]
- 7th
- 7th [Baltimore Ravens]
It’s entirely possible the Giants get two more compensatory draft picks due to the losses of Evan Engram, Austin Johnson and Lorenzo Carter in free agency.
Getty Images Adoree Jackson warms up before a Giants game in 2021.
You can never say never when it comes to NFL teams releasing a player of value due to salary cap restraints. Take the New York Giants’ offseason release of veteran cornerback James Bradberry, who’s now a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, for example.
The Giants have continued to not be shy about freeing cap space. Before his September release, Blake Martinez took a pay cut in March. This week, Leonard Williams’ contract was restructured and Darius Slayton was also given a pay cut.
Michael Ginnitti of Spotrac wrote on the most notable names with outs on their contracts in 2023.
There’s a chance for a notable Giants defender to be shown out the door next season.
Defender’s Future Could Be in Flux
Ginnitti believes Giants cornerback Adoree’ Jackson might not be on the roster come 2023. Jackson is in the second season of a three-year, $39 million contract and is the undoubtedly No. 1 cornerback on the team’s 2022 roster.
“Jackson’s major jump in cap, and a Giants team still shedding contracts, signifies a breakup could be possible. He’s talented enough to warrant an extension, but the Giants may not be in the right window to do that,” Ginnitti wrote.
If the Giants were to move on from the 26-year-old, it wouldn’t be until after the 2022 season.
Jackson will have a cap hit of $19.4 million in 2023. Ginnitti also said the Giants trading Jackson in the spring of 2023 could “open up $9M of cap space.”
It wouldn’t be the first time for Jackson if the Giants chose to release Jackson. The Tennessee Titans released Jackson before the 2021 season as he was coming off a knee injury and had just two interceptions in his first 46 career games. In the process, the Titans saved $10.2 million against their 2021 salary cap.
The former first-round pick was the NFL’s No. 15-ranked cornerback by Pro Football Focus while playing for the four-win Giants last season. He posted 62 total tackles and one interception.
Ginnitti didn’t rule out the possibility of an extension for the 26-year-old, whose best days could be ahead of him.
Why Losing Jackson Seems Unlikely
The Giants have an abundance amount of cap space in 2023 — about $55.6 million, which is the second-highest amount in the NFL, according to overthecap.com.
It doesn’t mean Jackson is completely safe from being traded or released from the team. But expectations will be made for the No. 1 cornerback on the Giants roster.
He’ll be placed in a system under defensive coordinator Wink Martindale, who operates a press man-to-man coverage system that could help the cornerback.
“He’s been dependable,” head coach Brian Daboll. “He’s made a lot of plays on the ball. He knows our defense. He’s a good communicator. Corners, you’re kind of out there on an island a lot of the time, and I think his teammates really respect him.”
Martindale’s system could also expose weaknesses in which preseason suggested that opposing quarterbacks are looking at the inexperienced Giants cornerbacks and making the choice to challenge them instead.
The Giants would be smart to wait and check under the hood to determine Jackson’s future.