Cardinals Rank Near Top of NFL in Cap Space

The Arizona Cardinals have plenty of money to play with moving forward.

Arizona Cardinals linebacker Dennis Gardeck (45) during organized team activities at the Dignity Health Arizona Cardinals Training Center on May 28, 2024. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY

ARIZONA -- The Arizona Cardinals received nearly $16 million more in salary over the weekend after former left tackle D.J. Humphries' salary officially came off Arizona's books.

Humphries - who tore his ACL towards the end of 2023 - was released with a Post June 1 designation, meaning he effectively became a free agent back in March while his cap hit remained with the Cardinals until just now.

For a deeper dive into the financial aspects, you can read here.

$15.95 million was officially added to the Cardinals' 2024 salary cap space, pushing them near the top of the league.

*all figures via Over The Cap*

Updated NFL Salary Cap Rankings

1. New England Patriots ($46.4 million)

The Patriots' top earner is Matt Judon at $14.6 million in 2024 - in terms of cap number. New England has just five players making more than $8 million this season.

2. Washington Commanders ($43.4 million)

Washington's salary is fairly top heavy this season, as three players have cap numbers of $21 million or higher in Terry McLaurin ($24.1 million), Daron Payne ($21.6 million) and Jonathan Allen ($21.4 million).

Their next highest cap hit is Andrew Wylie at $9.4 million.

3. Detroit Lions ($40.3 million)

Though recently extended, Jared Goff's $27.2 million cap hit is tops in Detroit with Taylor Decker ($19.1 million) and Frank Ragnow ($12.8 million) right behind.

4. Arizona Cardinals ($35.5 million)

Kyler Murray's massive $49.1 million cap hit ranks near the top of the league and comfortably takes the No. 1 spot for the Cardinals. Next is Budda Baker at $19 million and Jalen Thompson at $12.4 million.

They're the only three players that have a cap hit of $10+ million for 2024 now that Humphries' contract is off their books.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars ($34.1 million)

The Jaguars' top earner for 2024 is former Cardinals wideout Christian Kirk, who has a cap hit of $24.2 million. Cam Robinson's $21.9 million closely follows while five others are set to make north of $10 million.

Part of Arizona's pristine cap space is the investment in youth for the Cardinals under second-year general manager Monti Ossenfort and his two recent draft classes.

The fortitude to move on from big (and expensive) names has also benefited Arizona during their rebuild.