The Detroit Lions made big news Saturday night by agreeing to send fullback Matthew Stafford to the Los Angeles Rams for Jared Goff, two first-round picks and a third pick in return.
Although most attention has been paid to the concepts – and it is understandable that two first rounds are a great return – there are also financial implications of this agreement. With Jared Goff, there is a fairly significant deal that replaces the savings the Lions are making by sending Stafford to the West Coast.
Let’s break it all down.
Save money by shipping Stafford
In 2021, Matthew Stafford would cost the Lions $ 33 million on the cap space with a base salary of $ 9.5 million, a $ 10 million roster bonus payable on the fifth day of the 2021 league year and practice bonuses on the go.
But by sending him away, he will only cost $ 19 million against the Lions cap in 2021. immediately cleared $ 14 million in the hood space.
The Rams take in the $ 9.5 million salary, the $ 10 million roster bonus and the $ 500,000 in training bonuses for just $ 20 million.
Implications of Jared Goff
The Lions undoubtedly did the Rams a favor by taking Goff’s deal off their plate. However, it almost certainly got the Lions more draft capital in return, and that’s what they’re more interested in, because it’s a rebuild for the future. Eating cap for the next two years is worth it for them as it means more young players on rookie deals. But how much cap do they eat exactly?
The Rams were in a situation where they would have to eat a hit of $ 35, $ 33 and $ 32.5 million with Goff over the next three seasons, and cutting him would only have made it worse. Instead, they will assume that a $ 22.2 million cap will be struck by trading him, and in the process will earn $ 12.75 million from the cap.
The Lions will only accept the remaining guarantees on Goff’s contract, which includes his $ 25,325 million salary in 2021. Throw in a $ 2.5 million roster bonus for 2021 that the Lions will almost certainly hand out in 2021 – the Lions allegedly told Goff that he’s part of their future plans – and you have a capitalization of $ 27.825 million for this year.
Next year, Goff has a $ 15.5 million roster bonus guaranteed. This is the last remaining guaranteed bonus on Goff’s contract. So if Goff stays in 2022, he will guarantee the Lions that $ 15.5 million plus his $ 10 million non-guaranteed base salary for a combined cap of $ 25.5 million. However, if the Lions want to move on, they will owe Goff that $ 15.5 million toast and save $ 10 million in savings.
After that, the Lions are free at home. There is no guaranteed money left on Goff’s last two years (2023, 2024), which means Detroit can punish him without any penalty. Here are the numbers if they like him:
2023: $ 20 million base salary + $ 5 million grid bonus = $ 25 million cap hit
2024: $ 21 million base salary + $ 5 million roster bonus + $ 26 million cap hit
Year-by-year breakdown
Here is what the financial breakdown is per year:
2021:
- Lions release $ 14 million from Stafford’s contract
- Lions accept $ 27.825 million in cap from Goff’s contract
Net: $ 13.825 million added to cap
2022:
- A $ 25.5 million limit if Goff stays in the team
- $ 15.5 million cut if Lions goff cuts ($ 10 million in savings)
2023:
- A $ 25 million raise if Goff stays on the team
- $ 0 Limit if Lions Goff Cuts ($ 25 Million Savings)
2024:
- A limited cap of $ 26 million if Goff stays in the team
- Limit on $ 0 if Lions Goff cuts ($ 26 million saving)