Clearly, there is no intention to show contempt for the players who announce their retirement after the 2020 NFL season, but one of the results of both Vance McDonald and Maurkice Pouncey deciding to make it a career in Pittsburgh to mention, is some relief with regard to the Steelers 2021 salary cap situation. If you haven’t heard it yet, the Pittsburgh Steelers will have to make tough decisions because they are far above the expected salary cap for the upcoming season. Exactly what the cap will be at the moment is just a forecast, as the NFL did not announce on March 17 the amount needed for teams to be at the bottom with their top 51 salaries.
Before you know exactly where the Steelers stand, you need to quickly answer the question of why the NFL did not announce the 2021 salary cap, because there are many things going on with the 2021 season that neither the league nor the NFLPA are talking about. Is the NFL going to a 17-game season this fall? Will there be a new TV contract? Will both parties agree not to lower the salary cap for 2021 as much as a result of a projected jump for the 2022 season?
There is no guarantee that something will be worked out between the NFL and the Players Association that will help the salary cap, but if there is even a possibility that the two parties will agree on something else in 2021, it will probably benefit the Steelers find.
Where do the Steelers stand at the moment? According to overthecap.com, the Steelers are a little over $ 30 million above the expected salary cap of 2021. The number they are going with is only about $ 180 million, which is $ 5 million higher than the floor of $ 175 million in the past season.
If you have not noticed, I use many values. It is very difficult to reach the exact dollar amounts if things are not known. Therefore, these approximate values will give an estimate of the Steelers salary ceiling.
Another factor included in the number at overthecap.com is the amount of transfers Steelers have from the 2020 season, where they have not spent up to the salary cap. As previously reported, the Steelers are expected to have just over $ 5 million. Looking at the numbers used, the amount of $ 30 million more than the cap took into account.
Subsequently, the retirements of Vance McDonald and Maurkice Pouncey will have the money due to them for 2021 out of the books. Of course, the dead money will go through, but the base salary that would be earned by each player will come down from the salary. doppie.
These numbers are known for sure because Vance McDonald will save the Steelers $ 5.2 million for the salary cap and that Maurkice Pouncey will get $ 8 million from the books. One mistake some may make is the fact that $ 13.2 million will not come off the salary cap as it will move the Steelers’ top 51 salaries. With players earning $ 660,000 each and making the top 51, the Steelers will lighten just under $ 12 million for the salary cap.
Of the $ 30 million that the Steelers will have to cut, nearly $ 12 million was done without them having to make decisions themselves. Granted, the Steelers still have to cut more than $ 18 if the salary cap is about $ 180 million.
What else can the Steelers do to improve their situation? In the first place, the amount that the salary cap exceeds $ 180 million is so much less that the Steelers need to worry about. In addition, the Steelers will limit a portion of their salary limit based on everything done with Ben Roethlisberger’s contract. If Roethlisberger calls it a career and does not play in 2021, more than $ 18 million will move in the Steelers favor due to the $ 19 million salary minus the relocation to move another player in the top 5 . If Ben Roethlisberger stays with the Steelers and there is no transfer, but they rework his contract and give him a small extension, I can see the Steelers saving at least $ 10 million if they can get things right.
In addition, there is money to be saved with the restructuring of players who still have many years left, such as Stephon Tuitt and Cameron Heyward. If the Steelers want to restructure as much as possible for both players, they could save another $ 10 million.
Of course, there could still be roster cuts and other contract extensions to lower the players’ salary ceilings for the 2021 season.
All of these numbers just talk about where the Steelers should be, starting the league year 2021 on March 17th. The Steelers will also need an extra salary cap to be able to draw their draft picks, taking into account players 52 and 53 on the roster, signing their training squad and taking money during the season to do business and have transfers if not used. . But for now, the most important thing the Steelers can do at the start of the league year. As we saw years ago, where the Steelers can get money in other ways to prepare for these things.
Is the Steelers still over the expected salary limit of 2021? Yes they are. Did the retirement of McDonald and Pouncey help with this? Yes, it did. Are there other ways to meet the salary cap without removing the roster altogether? Yes there is, but signing free agents is still going to be difficult. But as we have seen in the past, difficult does not mean impossible for the Steelers, as there is still a lot of work to be done with the 2021 salary cap.