The Surprising Salary Cap Cost of Cardinals' Jacoby Brissett Trade

ARIZONA — The Arizona Cardinals, though still unofficial, are trading quarterback Jacoby Brissett to the Baltimore Ravens.

Brissett was benched this past weekend in favor for Gardner Minshew, who led the Cardinals to a comeback win over the Cowboys on Sunday and now has full control the team's starting position.

Brissett, demoted to Arizona's third emergency quarterback position, now finds himself on the way to Baltimore but likely won't play until next week, as the Ravens are on Thursday Night Football.

Things are still being finalized, though Brissett's departure opens a spot in the Cardinals' quarterback room.

And wallets.

Brissett's trade out of the desert comes at a cost for both this season and next.

By trading Brissett, the Cardinals will take on a dead cap hit of $9.6 million for the rest of the year while 2027 will see a $7.2 million dead cap hit according to Spotrac.

The Ravens, meanwhile, take on a mere $695,000.

Assuming the Jacoby Brissett trade is processed for Week 10, the #Ravens will be taking on a $650,000 salary for the rest of the 2026 season ($695k cap hit).

The #Cardinals will take on dead cap hits of $9.6M for 2026, and another $7.2M in 2027.
— Spotrac (@spotrac) November 4, 2026

What This Means For Cardinals' Salary Cap Space

For the moment, Arizona saves a total of $1.3 million for the rest of the 2026 season by trading Brissett. That places their running cap total at $11.5 million per Spotrac, which keeps them firmly at No. 11 for most cap space in the league.

This money can be rolled over into next offseason.

The Cardinals' total dead cap space does increase by $8.9 million immediately, seeing their total jump from $93.1 million to $102 million for 2026. Brissett now slots into the No. 2 spot for highest dead cap hit in Arizona, trailing No. 1 Kyler Murray ($46.5 million) and No. 3 Marvin Harrison Jr. ($8.8 million).

The Cardinals still rank No, 5 in total dead cap money for 2026, far behind the No. 1 ranked Miami Dolphins at $190 million.

For next offseason, 2027, Brissett's dead cap hit ties Murray ($7.2 million) for the highest in Arizona. After accounting for Brissett's hit, the Cardinals will be up to $20.4 million — though the number will surely increase as the organization makes more moves.

Brissett, scheduled to be a free agent next offseason, initially had a void year added by the Cardinals after he had his contract restructured at the start of training camp.

Arizona made a surprising decision to not absorb all of Brissett's salary this season, though it shouldn't have a massive impact on their total spending power in 2027.

Using OverTheCap's projections, the Cardinals have the second-most projected cap space next offseason at $104.2 million.

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