The NFL sent a memorandum to teams on Thursday stating that the salary floor is would be increased to $ 180 million for the 2021 season. While that’s a little bit of good news, it’s still good news for the 49ers and the looming gymnastics for salary actions they’ll have to do in free agencies.
Prior to last season, the NFL and the NFL Players’ Association agreed to a salary cap of $ 175 million because they stimulated the long-term financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Teams can usually rely on the hood to jump about $ 10 million annually. A $ 175 million floor would have been a $ 23 million drop by 2020, leaving the 49ers with about $ 9 million in headroom.
Now the NFL has repaired the floor to $ 180 million, leaving San Francisco with $ 12,670,669 in available space. The number will jump up once they have made some cuts and restructuring of grids to free up an extra room.
General manager John Lynch told reporters after the season that the team plans to raise $ 175 million.
“We’re working under the 175-meter (million) site,” Lynch said during his end-of-season video conference. ‘We felt it was best to work from it and formulate our plans from it. If there’s anything on top, it’s our sauce. ”
The additional $ 5 million would be beneficial to work out their free agent situation, but it is also a sign that the cap could be higher than $ 180 million.
Either way, it’s not easy for the 49ers to drive this season. This is the first time they really show up against the cap, with good players like Trent Williams, K’Waun Williams and Kyle Juszczyk all hitting free agents. They need every last dollar they can get on the cap, and the NFL’s announcement over a raised cap floor gives them $ 5 million extra they did not intend.