Elvis' 2025 cap and roster cleanup proposal (14 Viewers)

[BreesusSaves]

One thing being overlooked is if Cam and Ram retire and pay back their pro-rated signing bonuses from future years on their contracts, more space on the books will open up than can currently be projected. That's the tricky thing, will the Saints go after their pro-rated signing bonuses or not if they retire?

Also, it is very common for retiring players to pay back their pro-rated signing bonuses so no one should think less of the Saints organization should this occur.

 

[Merl]

I come up with the same numbers on Carr but what you failed to mention is that the $59.6m dead money for 2026 is still about $1.8m less than his cap hit will be.

 

[Elvis]

One thing being overlooked is if Cam and Ram retire and pay back their pro-rated signing bonuses from future years on their contracts, more space on the books will open up than can currently be projected. That's the tricky thing, will the Saints go after their pro-rated signing bonuses or not if they retire?

Also, it is very common for retiring players to pay back their pro-rated signing bonuses so no one should think less of the Saints organization should this occur.

Cam isn't retiring, he's said as much already. Ram has already been VERY friendly with cutting his base salary and we won't go after him to repay signing bonus money.

 

[Elvis]

I come up with the same numbers on Carr but what you failed to mention is that the $59.6m dead money for 2026 is still about $1.8m less than his cap hit will be.

That actually isn't true. If he's restructured, his cap number for 2026 would go up to $69.2m if we were to keep him for 2026 and his 2027 dead money cap hit from void years would be $40.4m. Who wants to eat any of that money for one more year of Derek Carr? I just don't get it.

 

[BreesusSaves]

Cam isn't retiring, he's said as much already. Ram has already been VERY friendly with cutting his base salary and we won't go after him to repay signing bonus money.

These are things we assume won't happen, but they very well could.

Also, Ram's been paid over $70m in his career. If he retired and paid back his 2025-2028 pro-rated, he's still walking away with over $53.5m for his career in New Orleans while at the same time giving the Saints some very helpful cap relief.

 

[Elvis]

I hear you, but neither of those are happening.

Listen to Cam. Not retiring.


And Ram gave his knee to the team and had his guaranteed salary from last year turned into bonus that you now want him to give back? Not going to happen.

 

[BreesusSaves]

Again, not saying it will happen, only that it could, and if it does, it would further accelerate the Saints lowering their cap.

 

[Elvis]

Again, not saying it will happen, only that it could, and if it does, it would further accelerate the Saints lowering their cap.

Ok, hang on to what could happen but won't. I'm not sure how that adds to this thread full of real life numbers though.

 

[soggymoss84]

These are things we assume won't happen, but they very well could.

Also, Ram's been paid over $70m in his career. If he retired and paid back his 2025-2028 pro-rated, he's still walking away with over $53.5m for his career in New Orleans while at the same time giving the Saints some very helpful cap relief.

Ram is retiring due to injury, we can’t go after signing bonus money when that happens I believe, players are protected from their careers ending due to injury

 

[soggymoss84]

For those that want to keep Carr in 2025, I am now going to do another version of the cap cleanup. I do not think this is the way the team should do it, but it is an alternative way. I will show the amount of savings for each player. No players being restructured will having expiring contracts with void years next season. I will also show some of the financial repercussions of the Carr restructure.

Restructures

Player Name (2025 Savings)

Derek Carr ($31m) will cost $59.6m to cut in 2026
Erik McCoy ($6.7m)
Cesar Ruiz ($6.4m)
Carl Granderson ($5.25m)
Alvin Kamara ($1.4m)
Pete Werner (2.5m)

Cuts

Player Name (2025 Savings)

Jamal Williams ($1.6m)
Cedrick Wilson ($2.4m)

The moves above get the team $3m under the cap for 2025 while only cutting 2 players and without restructuring a single contract that will void in 2026. If the team wanted to open up space for free agents, they’d need to start digging into contracts that will void in 2026, re-signing players like Juwan and Chase Young who are going to void in 2025, or extending young players with a year left on their contracts (the most reasonable option, but there is limited saving there). There is also the option to designate no more than 2 of the players below as June 1 cuts and regaining some cap space in June. Cam and Taysom netting $20m in June, but pushing their 2026 void numbers up.

What this looks like in 2026 for players that will be or likely to be gone.

Player Name (Reason for leaving, Cap Charge)

Derek Carr (Cut, $59.6m)
Cam Jordan (Void, $14.9m)
Taysom Hill (Void, $9.7m)
Demario Davis (Void, $8.7m)
Tyrann Mathieu (Void, $7.2m)
Nathan Shepherd (Void, $4m)
Foster Moreau (Void, $1.4m)
Khalen Saunders (Void, $1.4m)
JT Gray (Void, $1m)

Total Dead 2026 money: $107 million ($22m MORE than what the Broncos had in 2024 when they cut Russel Wilson)

Someone WILL come along and argue how they can kick the can out to 2027 and beyond for new players. The question is whether we SHOULD do that. I don’t think we should do that this year. I don’t think we should take on $59.6m in dead money in 2026 for Carr.

This highlights precisely why we have to move on from Carr THIS season, and I think we should do it and take his entire dead cap hit this season also

 

[Elvis]

This highlights precisely why we have to move on from Carr THIS season, and I think we should do it and take his entire dead cap hit this season also

I know. Only a few of us want to hear it, but it's real. I don't agree on taking his entire 2025 cap hit in one year though. That forces us to do things that we don't need to and shouldn't want to do. We'd literally have nothing but minimum contracts and have to give up our good young players. I don't want to gut the team like that.

 

[St. Geezy]

This guy says the same thing I have been saying. You’re effectively proposing all this maneuvering just to reach the same conclusion.

The cap is on course to be corrected. Now, if you’re merely just concerned about cash expenditures for some reason and don’t want to pay Carr for that odd reason, sure, have at it. But our cap is going to be fixed on its own. It’s been building towards this.

 

[St. Widge]

This guy says the same thing I have been saying. You’re effectively proposing all this maneuvering just to reach the same conclusion.

The cap is on course to be corrected. Now, if you’re merely just concerned about cash expenditures for some reason and don’t want to pay Carr for that odd reason, sure, have at it. But our cap is going to be fixed on its own. It’s been building towards this.

I believe Elvis has shown a way that we get more cap space if we get rid of Carr this year and it doesn't involve cutting Cam/Demario/Tyrann/Hill and actually extends the contract of some of the "young core". But, even if you are right and it's the same result, IMO there is an advantage to finding out what we have in Rattler or another young QB before we have to decide if we need to draft a QB high in 2026.

 

[St. Geezy]

I believe Elvis has shown a way that we get more cap space if we get rid of Carr this year and it doesn't involve cutting Cam/Demario/Tyrann/Hill and actually extends the contract of some of the "young core". But, even if you are right and it's the same result, IMO there is an advantage to finding out what we have in Rattler or another young QB before we have to decide if we need to draft a QB high in 2026.

That’s what training camp is for.

You don’t have to sabotage the competition to do this. Have them compete. If Rattler is the guy, a Derek Carr being on the roster shouldn’t prevent him from showing that.

 

[StudioSaint]

That’s what training camp is for.

You don’t have to sabotage the competition to do this. Have them compete. If Rattler is the guy, a Derek Carr being on the roster shouldn’t prevent him from showing that.

I think most people believe that if Carr is on the roster, it's unlikely that Rattler wins the starting job. Some people seem like they want Rattler to be given the starting job no matter what, so they really want the Saints to move on from Carr to clear the way for Rattler to start.

I think there is a flawed assumption to that line of thinking. The assumption is that next year's starting QB will either be Carr or Rattler. It could very well be neither.