Cap Floor: what you think you know, but don't.

[Tjodalv]

Every offseason since the latest CBA I've seen people repeatedly misrepresent what the cap floor is for the NFL. And since it's been so much more prevalent this year due to the Bears having more space than usual, I figured it was time to dispel some misconceptions.

What you think you know: that teams have to spend 89% of the allotted salary cap for a given season. This season the cap is set at $167 mil, and many of you are under the delusion that means the Bears have to go into the season with no more than $18.37 mil in cap room left.

What so many of you clearly don't know: that the 89% floor is calculated as an aggregate over four seasons. Meaning that if, just for example, the cap were to remain the same over the next four years -- $668 million in total aggregate spending for the 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020 seasons -- the Bears would have to spend $594.52 mil over that period. So what does that mean? It means that any team could go into one season $73.48 million under the cap and not incur a penalty as long as they spend up to the cap in the other three years in the designated four year period (2017-2020 seasons).

What is this penalty for not spending up to the floor that many of you are so afeared of? Are they going to dock teams draft picks? Forfeit games? Require a halftime sacrifice of the city's top Pop Warner player and most attractive and disease free slut? No. They have to fucking fork over the difference between spending and cap floor to the players that were on the roster during the given spending period. That's...catastrophic, right? It, seriously, doesn't mean a damn thing except that teams can't horde cash by under-spending on their roster.

http://www.thephinsider.com/2013/2/17/3997314/nfl-salary-cap-2013-amount-salary-floor
http://www.bigcatcountry.com/2015/2/26/8113215/nfl-salary-cap-89-percent-spending-jaguars
http://www.dawgsbynature.com/2016/3...salary-cap-understanding-the-89-cash-spending
http://www.bucsnation.com/2015/3/13/8208069/nfl-salary-cap-floor-explained-its-basically-irrelevant

 

[BaBaBlacksheep]

Holy shit TJ. Best.... Post.... Ever. Seeing people post about this has been driving me nuts the last few weeks.

Seriously, if there are any mods left on CCS sticky this shit.

 

[Ditka19861]

So where are the Bears at over the last 4 seasons? How much money do we have to spend?

 

[Adipost]

So where are the Bears at over the last 4 seasons? How much money do we have to spend?

This^^^

 

[Tjodalv]

So where are the Bears at over the last 4 seasons? How much money do we have to spend?

Doesn't matter. The prior 4 year period (2013-2016) is over and this is the first year of the new period (2017-2020). They can spend as little as they feel like as long as they make up for it over the subsequent three seasons by spending closer to the cap. They could have signed absolutely no one this offseason and it wouldn't have made a damn bit of difference.

And, again, the only thing that happens if they don't meet the 89% mark over that period is they give the remaining cash to the players that were on those rosters. That money doesn't count as a cap penalty or anything, it's just cold, hard, cash that is not lining the McCaskey's pockets anymore.

Seriously guys, what you should be taking away from this thread is that the cap floor is absolutely meaningless to the way teams conduct free agency or structure contracts. Once more just in case: the cap floor is fucking meaningless.

 

[Adipost]

Doesn't matter. The prior 4 year period (2013-2016) is over and this is the first year of the new period (2017-2020). They can spend as little as they feel like as long as they make up for it over the subsequent three seasons by spending closer to the cap. They could have signed absolutely no one this offseason and it wouldn't have made a damn bit of difference.

And, again, the only thing that happens if they don't meet the 89% mark over that period is they give the remaining cash to the players that were on those rosters. That money doesn't count as a cap penalty or anything, it's just cold, hard, cash that is not lining the McCaskey's pockets anymore.

Seriously guys, what you should be taking away from this thread is that the cap floor is absolutely meaningless to the way teams conduct free agency or structure contracts. Once more just in case: the cape floor is fucking meaningless.

But that's still an incentive to hit the cap floor. If you have to spend the cash anyway, why not go ahead and try to make your team better?

 

[Aesopian]

The smart idea would be to extend valuable players Eddie Goldman, Cameron Meredith and so on.

 

[nc0gnet0]

Doesn't matter. The prior 4 year period (2013-2016) is over and this is the first year of the new period (2017-2020). They can spend as little as they feel like as long as they make up for it over the subsequent three seasons by spending closer to the cap. They could have signed absolutely no one this offseason and it wouldn't have made a damn bit of difference.

And, again, the only thing that happens if they don't meet the 89% mark over that period is they give the remaining cash to the players that were on those rosters. That money doesn't count as a cap penalty or anything, it's just cold, hard, cash that is not lining the McCaskey's pockets anymore.

Seriously guys, what you should be taking away from this thread is that the cap floor is absolutely meaningless to the way teams conduct free agency or structure contracts. Once more just in case: the cap floor is fucking meaningless.

Essentially, if a team stays under the cap (significantly) for one or more years, each consecutive year thier cap limit goes up. If they stay under 89% over the 4 year period, the team has to write a check to the Union, who then distributes it to the players.

What I want to know, is over the last 4 year period, did any team have to do this, and who?

 

[Tjodalv]

What I want to know, is over the last 4 year period, did any team have to do this, and who?

Oddly enough, I haven't seen a single story about whether or not any teams actually met the criteria for being penalized. I kind of expected to see a little reporting on it since the first four year period since the cap floor inception just ended; but there hasn't been anything and I'm too lazy to go back and calculate every team's cumulative cap space over the last four seasons to see if anyone came in under it. Lack of reporting on this just kind of proves my point that it really doesn't matter (or, at least, that no one cares).

Edit: after a quick glance, there were definitely teams that didn't spend anywhere close to the floor over the '13-'16 division. The Browns spent a cumulative $105+ under the cap (according to the numbers on sportrac)...which would be something like $44 mil under the floor. So, at the very minimum them and the Jags had to pay out. Can't think of any other teams that are perennially way, way, under the cap, but there's probably more.

 

[BaBaBlacksheep]

The smart idea would be to extend valuable players Eddie Goldman, Cameron Meredith and so on.

The money not spent this year can be rolled over to next year. So it's not like the money goes away. Considering Eddie has health issues and Meredith is still an unknown outside of one decent year I would bet they wait until after next season before offering up extensions.

 

[nc0gnet0]

Oddly enough, I haven't seen a single story about whether or not any teams actually met the criteria for being penalized. I kind of expected to see a little reporting on it since the first four year period since the cap floor inception just ended; but there hasn't been anything and I'm too lazy to go back and calculate every team's cumulative cap space over the last four seasons to see if anyone came in under it. Lack of reporting on this just kind of proves my point that it really doesn't matter (or, at least, that no one cares).

I haven't either and was curious........

 

[gallagher]

Learn something new every day; I didnt know that the period was predesignated. That's far less complicated than what I understood it to be (where the average would always be calculated based on the present and previous three years.).

Great post

 

[Bearly]

As an aside, you do need to keep long term cap ramifications in mind since there is still a hard ceiling to the cap. Cap doesn't go up to compensate one year for another. We're still spending last years money as well so the carryover is still in effect even though we've met the requirements.

 

[Mongo_76]

Holy shit TJ. Best.... Post.... Ever. Seeing people post about this has been driving me nuts the last few weeks.

Seriously, if there are any mods left on CCS sticky this shit.

The fact that you think this was the best post ever is an indictment on CCS...

 

[BaBaBlacksheep]

The fact that you think this was the best post ever is an indictment on CCS...

I'd like to see a follow up post explaining compensatory picks too. Every year the same shit has to be explained over and over.

 

[Newblood]

The fact that you think this was the best post ever is an indictment on CCS...

Odd, coming from the guy that thought the most obvious posts of "Jay Cutler sucks" were the most original, insightful and best posts on CCS.