Restructured Deals Could Create Cap Space

Franchise officials could keep more of the roster intact for 2022 by redoing current contracts, but they will have to pay eventually.

Joe Nicholson/USA Today Sports

It should be clear by now the Tennessee Titans will face another challenging offseason when it comes to both retaining and adding talent for the 2022 season.

In an article earlier this week, we broke down an informative OverTheCap graphic that combined three primary factors to those challenges – effective salary-cap space, draft capital and potential snaps lost to free agency. The website estimated that the Titans ranked 25th out of 32 teams in terms of offseason resources for 2022. Not great.

That’s why there is so much speculation regarding the possibility big-name players – left tackle Taylor Lewan, left guard Rodger Saffold and cornerback Jackrabbit Jenkins, among others – could be cut to open up cap room. How else, after all, would the team hope to re-sign key players like linebacker Harold Landry and/or center Ben Jones, not to mention competing in the free-agent market to fill other needs?

The good news for the Titans is there is the potential for change without doing a complete razor-blade job on the roster.

That’s because the they have a high degree of flexibility when it comes to potentially restructuring or extending contracts of current players to help solve the team’s salary-cap issues.

In fact, this graphic, a combined effort of OverTheCap and Pro Football Focus, lists the Titans as having the potential of the third-most 2022 cap space saved through contract restructuring.

Taking things a step further, OverTheCap points out the Titans theoretically could save as much as $57 million against the cap in so-called “simple” contract restructures alone. A simple restructure converts a player’s guaranteed salary payments into prorated signing bonuses within the confines of the remainder of the contract – as opposed to extending the deal. In other words, a player doesn’t wind up making any less money – in the long haul -- with a restructured deal. But the change in the way the contract is set up offers a team more immediate cap space.

Who might be candidates for restructuring their contract deals to give the Titans more cap room?

Per OverTheCap’s figures, redoing quarterback Ryan Tannehill’s contract could save the Titans $20.9 million in 2022 cap space. Linebacker Bud Dupree ($11.2 million), wide receiver Julio Jones ($7.8 million), safety Kevin Byard ($7.3 million), linebacker Zach Cunningham ($6 million), Lewan ($5.9 million) and running back Derrick Henry ($5.5 million) are among those who also offer potential savings.

Sooooo, that solves the Titans’ problems, right? Just restructure a bundle of contracts to add more 2022 cap room, use that money to take care of business, and look forward to yet another strong season.

If only it were that easy.

The issue with re-structuring contracts is that while it often helps teams like the Titans in the short run, it can sting in the long term. Because as mentioned, the player is still going to get all his contract money. It’s just a matter of when.

Case in point: Tannehill. In order to create the 2021 salary-cap room necessary to add Jones via trade from Atlanta last season, the Titans restructured Tannehill’s deal.

That meant the veteran quarterback only counted $11.1 million against the cap in 2021, and it made way for Jones. But that same restructure bumped Tannehill’s cap figure up to a team-high $38.6 million for 2022 – more than twice the figure of any other teammate – and made him all but uncuttable and untradeable this offseason.

That didn’t seem like it would be such a big deal at the time because Tannehill had played so well during his first two seasons with Tennessee. It seemed more concerning, however, after Tannehill struggled at times during 2021 season and capped the campaign with three interceptions in the playoff loss to Cincinnati. As of late, many irate Titans fans are ready to sack their quarterback.

Bottom line is likely this: It would make sense for a team like the Titans – who are among the AFC’s best teams and still in “win-now” mode – to do some contract re-structuring that would better the team’s salary cap for the 2022 offseason.

But neither the Titans nor any other NFL team can afford to go overboard in terms of re-structuring deals.

Eventually, every team pays the price.