Packers’ Salary Cap Plagued by Dead Money

The Green Bay Packers, when all is said and done, will push past $50 million in dead cap money for the 2024 NFL season.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – In A Christmas Carol, The Ghost of Christmas Past haunted Scrooge. For the 2024 Green Bay Packers, the Ghost of Contracts Past haunts the salary cap.

The Packers have more than $46.5 million of dead money on their salary cap, second-most in the NFL behind only the Minnesota Vikings, according to OverTheCap.com. That’s 18.2 percent of the $255.4 million NFL salary cap. Once De’Vondre Campbell’s contract comes off the books on June 1, that will surge past $50 million.

The Packers are about $26 million below the cap (not yet including Keisean Nixon’s contract), anyway, so they’re in good shape to keep adding to the roster. Nonetheless, they’d be in tremendous shape if not for the financial fallout of aggressive cap management and bad luck.

First, the bad luck: In November 2020, Green Bay signed David Bakhtiari to a four-year contract extension worth $92 million. Less than two months later, he suffered a torn ACL at practice. After he played in only one game last season, the Packers released him on Monday. Because of prorated signing bonus money from the original extension and a couple cap-saving restructures, Bakhtiari will count about $19.1 million on this year’s cap.

Unable to reach an agreement on a revamped contract, the Packers released running back Aaron Jones on Monday, as well. Because of last year’s restructure, which included the insertion of three void years, Jones will count almost $12.4 million against the cap even while scoring touchdowns for the Vikings.

Safety Darnell Savage played under the fifth-year option last year. To help with the cap, the Packers inserted void years onto the back of the contract. Thus, he’ll count almost $5.5 million against the cap even while presumably starting for the Jaguars.

Cornerback Rasul Douglas will count $5.1 million against the cap while intercepting passes for the Bills.

Offensive tackle Yosh Nijman’s $4.3 million contract as a restricted free agent last offseason was made more cap-friendly with the insertion of void years. So, he’ll count about $2.5 million, regardless of where he signs in free agency this year.

Nixon’s one-year contract last offseason also was made more cap-friendly with the insertion of void years. So, his old contract will count almost $1.5 million against the cap.

All told, according to OverTheCap.com, the Packers’ salary cap includes $46,556,149 of dead money.

For more cap flexibility, the Packers decided to release Campbell. That move will become official on June 1. Until then, his full cap charge of $14.23 million will remain on the ledger. After June 1, the Packers will create $10.57 million of cap space while absorbing another $3.66 million of dead cap. That will push the total to about $50.2 million.

The rest of Campbell’s cap charge, about $7.97 million, will be pushed onto the 2025 cap as dead money.

The Vikings, Packers and Lions rank among the 10 teams with the most dead money. The Bears are eighth on the positive side of the ledger.

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