The salary cap increased to $224.8 million for the 2023 season.
For some teams, the slight increase in cap space provides a little breathing room to retain players on expiring deals or acquire talent that could help them succeed in the upcoming season.
Other teams see hardly any relief, and one of the primary reasons is because of dead money against the salary cap. While NFL teams may trade or release players, there isn’t exactly a free lunch as teams may still owe money on the contract — hence the “dead money,” even though the player is with a new team.
Here is a look at the teams that owe the most to least dead money ahead of free agency. All salary cap figures are via Over The Cap.
1. Philadelphia Eagles — $46,488,912
Most dead money: DT Fletcher Cox ($15,359,292)
2. Las Vegas Raiders — $29,402,499
Most dead money: LB Cory Littleton ($9,986,000)
3. Carolina Panthers — $28,593,708
Most dead money: RB Christian McCaffrey $18,352,250
4. Chicago Bears — $22,468,812
Most dead money: DE Robert Quinn ($13,233,520)
5. San Francisco 49ers — $17,085,988
Most dead money: DE Dee Ford ($8,589,999)
6. Green Bay Packers — $16,952,198
Most dead money: S Adrian Amos ($7,950,000)
7. Washington Commanders — $14,188,157
Most dead money: CB William Jackson ($9,000,000)
8. Atlanta Falcons — $14,086,001
Most dead money: LB Deion Jones ($12,140,784)
9. Tennessee Titans — $10,377,620
Most dead money: WR Julio Jones ($8,400,000)
10. Arizona Cardinals — $9,229,638
Most dead money: DE Jordan Phillips ($5,904,334)
11. Dallas Cowboys — $8,642,623
Most dead money: RT La’el Collins ($8,384,029)
12. New York Giants — $8,039,609
Most dead money: WR Sterling Shepard ($4,245,000)
13. Pittsburgh Steelers — $8,028,814
Most dead money: DT Stephon Tuitt ($4,755,000)
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers — $7,942,466
Most dead money: DE Akiem Hicks ($4,903,295)
15. Cleveland Browns — $7,816,064
Most dead money: $7,500,000
16. Detroit Lions — $6,281,219
Most dead money: $5,976,667
17. Seattle Seahawks — $5,870,942
Most dead money: DE Carlos Dunlap ($4,200,000)
18. Baltimore Ravens — $5,556,041
Most dead money: TE Nick Boyle ($3,315,000)
19. New Orleans Saints — $5,038,479
Most dead money: S Malcolm Jenkins ($3,950,000)
20. Los Angeles Rams — $4,423,395
Most dead money: LT Andrew Whitworth ($2,000,000)
21. Minnesota Vikings — $3,818,911
Most dead money: CB Patrick Peterson, OT Jesse Davis ($750,000 apiece)
22. Indianapolis Colts — $3,242,320
Most dead money: RB Nyheim Hines ($3,000,000)
23. Miami Dolphins — $3,012,603
Most dead money: OT Eric Fisher ($1,991,112)
24. New York Jets — $2,884,269
Most dead money: DE Jacob Martin ($2,310,000)
25. Buffalo Bills — $1,663,000
Most dead money: TE O.J. Howard ($625,000)
26. Denver Broncos — $1,585,866
Most dead money: DT Mike Purcell ($774,168)
27. Jacksonville Jaguars — $1,411,497
Most dead money: WR Laviska Shenault ($789,285)
28. New England Patriots — $1,379,605
Most dead money: CB Justin Bethel ($333,334)
29. Houston Texans — $901,995
Most dead money: DT Ross Blacklock ($834,991)
30. Cincinnati Bengals — $540,902
Most dead money: DT Tyler Shelvin ($368,280)
31. Los Angeles Chargers — $186,262
Most dead money: RB Larry Rountree ($87,880)
32. Kansas City Chiefs — $98,428
Most dead money: CB Nazeeh Johnson ($57,756)
