CPA_MM

Most NFL fans believe the NFL salary cap levels the playing field between clubs regarding resources for players. If that were true, how can one club with $174M of the available cap for the season afford sixteen players with contracts paying = > $5M per year (Eagles), and another club with $213M of the available cap can only afford eight(Chiefs)? I can best illustrate the problem by comparing quarterback contracts. One salary cap extreme is Jalen Hurts's contract with the Eagles. He signed an extension that runs through the 2028 season. The agreement has seven void years. The first void year is the 2029 season, with an assigned $98M cap. The contract is also heavily backloaded. Every season, the amount of cash Hurts receives exceeds the season's cap charge. Hurts contract costs $43M yearly, but the cap charge for the 2023 season is $6M. On the other end of the salary cap strategy spectrum is Patrich Mahomes of the Chiefs. He signed an extension that runs through the 2031 season. The agreement has two void years with no cap assigned. The Chiefs wrote the contract with Mahome heavily backloaded. Unlike Hurts, only three of the twelve seasons (through 2031) have cash exceeding the cap charged. Mahomes' contract cost $3M less than Hurts' at $40M. The cap charge was $37M compared to Hurts of $6M. The Eagles will have an advantage of low cap costs at quarterback through the 2028 season because of the use of void years. Hurts contract is only one example. Of the 15 highest-paid Eagle players, thirteen have void years as part of the contract with a $327M cap assigned. The Chiefs have none. Teams using void years on contracts can afford $40M to $60M more in contracts. Clubs can delay dead cap implications because of void years for years. Is this good for football?

The Eagles are not circumventing the current system. The current system charges the cap based on the contract. So the Eagles last year signed a player to a one year- $14M fully guaranteed contract. Only $4M hit the cap because of void years on the contract. End void years having cap assigned would be a start.

The Commanders Should Copy the Eagles in Cap Strategy The Eagle cap strategy is the following: If the quarterback can take the team to the Super Bowl, modify existing player contracts with void years and backloading to create extra cap space. Use this cap space to acquire more high-priced player contracts using void years to lower cap charges. The dead cap problem can be delayed six seasons or more- worry about it later. Over the last three years, the Eagle dead cap write-off was almost 3-times higher than the Commanders - $186M to $69M. The Eagles are pulling out all salary cap gimmicks (void years) to gain a competitive advantage over the competition. Compare the Eagle's opening cap to the Commanders in early September. (Data from OverTheCap contract files) The Eagles have eleven players with contracts = > paying their players on average $10M of more per year. (APY)—the Commander's five. The Eagles had $5M of cap space with contracts worth $277M (APY). The Commanders had $2M of cap space with contracts worth $218M (APY). The Eagle cap charge on contracts that cost $59M (APY) more than the Commanders is $26M less. The highest 15 paid Eagles players - 13 had contracts with void years. The amount of cap assigned to void years was $327M. Of the 15 highest-paid Commander players, only four had contracts with void years amounting to $21M. The cap charge on the top 15 Eagle contracts was 53% of the contract value, and the Commanders 87% of the contract value. The Eagle quarterback (Hurts) has a contract worth $43.2M and a cap charge of $6.1M. The Commander quarterback (Brissett, replaced by Howell) has a contract worth $8M with a cap charge of $8.5M- $2.4M higher than Hurts. Eagle AJ Brown- APY contract $20.8M- cap charge $8.3M. Commander Logan Thomas contract APY $6.6M, cap charge $8.7M. And on and on and on. The Eagles have signed all 15 of their highest-paid players to 2024 with a cap charge of 40% more. The Commanders have signed ten of their 15 highest-paid players to 2024 with a cap increase of 60%. The use of void years on Eagle contracts is one major reason they’re successful. Six or more seasons from now, the Eagles may have a salary cap problem, but until then, they can chase the Super Bowl. If you are okay with artificially manipulated contracts to gain a competitive advantage over other clubs, then the current system is the system for you. COMMANDERS V EAGLES.pdf