A Breakdown of the Bengals' Cap Space Situation Entering the 2021 Offseason
CINCINNATI — The Bengals have lost five straight and eight out of their last nine games.
With a 2-10-1 record and Joe Burrow out for the season, fans have shifted their focus to the 2021 offseason.
Cincinnati's 30-7 loss to Dallas put them in the pole position for the No. 3 pick in April's NFL Draft. As long as they lose one of their next three games, they'll finish with the third selection.
The Bengals have to hit a grand slam in the draft, but they also have to stay aggressive in free agency if they're going to turn things around this offseason.
Addressing weaknesses on the offensive and defensive lines should be priority number one in free agency.
The 2021 salary cap isn't set due to COVID-19, but it's expected to be anywhere from $175-195 million. People around the league believe it will be greater than the minimum of $175 million, but potentially less than the 2020 cap ($198 million).
The Bengals should have plenty of space to work with this offseason according to salary cap expert Brad Spielberger.
“They have 37 players that are currently under contract [for 2021] and the totally liability there is $142 million,” Spielberger said on the Locked on Bengals podcast. “Whatever the cap is, obviously that minus this 142 number and then you obviously get to roll over or carry over unused cap space from 2020 and they have about $11 million there so they should have 50, 60, 70 million to work with potentially."
The Bengals have plenty of players that they could potentially move on from to create more cap space including Giovani Bernard, Bobby Hart, B.J. Finney and Geno Atkins.
Even if they stand pat, Cincinnati should have plenty of room to maneuver, despite committing over $130 million to seven unrestricted free agents last offseason.
“That’s if everyone that’s currently under contract stays. Of course you gotta fill out the roster," Spielberger said. "We use a term called effective cap space. Because they only have 37 guys under contract you multiply 53 minus 37, [which is] 16 times the minimum because obviously they gotta field a full roster so maybe a little but less than the 60-70 million I mentioned, but they have a good amount of room for sure.”
The stage is set for the Bengals to attack their biggest weaknesses in the draft and in free agency. They have the room to re-sign William Jackson III and Carl Lawson with either long-term contracts or by using the franchise tag, while also adding multiple proven players in free agency.
Listen to Spielberger's entire breakdown of the Bengals' cap situation below. For more on the Bengals, including the latest NFL news, go here!
