NFL Projects 2026 Salary Cap; What that Means for Giants’ 2026 Available Space

How much will the Giants' current cap picture improve given the new range being reported for the 2026 league-wide salary cap?

The National Football League has reportedly informed clubs of the 2026 salary cap range. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The NFL Network has reported that the league has advised all 32 member clubs that the projected 2026 salary cap floor will be between $301.2 million and $305.7 per club.

That figure represents an increase of at least $22 million, a significant jump from last year’s $279.2 million cap figure. 

The NFL informed clubs today it is projecting a 2026 salary cap in the range of $301.2 million to $305.7 million per club, per source.

That would represent another significant jump from this year’s $279.2 million cap number, and nearly $100M than the $208.2M cap in 2022. pic.twitter.com/3Mr146H01C

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 30, 2026

That’s good news for teams like the  New York Giants, who based on an initial projection of $295 million (not counting any carryover from 2025) by Over the Cap,  were listed as of Friday afternoon, as being in the red for overall space ($58,866) and effective cap space ($10.158 million), the effective cap space being what the Giants need to fit their Top 51 highest cap figures into the 2026 offseason cap.

With the new projection, the Giants stand to gain anywhere from $5.7 million to $10.2 million of their 2026 cap, depending on where the final number lands. 

In terms of the cap space, the worst-case scenario for the Giants would see their total projected space rise to $5.641 million, and their projected effective cap space improve to -$4.458 million.  

The best-case scenario for the Giants, if the cap maxes out at the high end of the projected scale, would see their total cap space jump to $10.141 million, and their effective cap space jump to $41,834.

Giants have some work to do to improve their 2026 cap's health

Regardless of where the league-wide salary cap ends up within the projected range, the Giants are going to have to trim some fat off their books.

They can clear an estimated $24.1 million in space if they terminate the contracts of kicker Graham Gano ($4.5 million savings), running back Devin Singletary ($5.25 million savings), offensive lineman James Hudson III ($5.83 million savings), and inside linebacker Bobby Okereke ($9 million savings).

In addition to those potential cap cuts, the Giants are likely to redo some existing contracts.

Some liekly candidates for restructure and/or extension (usuing voidable years) include left guard Jon Ruyan Jr ($11.75 million cap hit, $9.25 million base salary);  cornerback Paulson Adebo ($24.199 million cap hit, $13.5 million guaranteed in 2026), outside linebacker Brian Burns ($36.55 million cap hit, $24.050 million base salary), and defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence ($26.958 million cap hit, $18.5 million base salary).

The exact cap number will be announced toward the end of February/beginning of March before the start of the 2026 league year.

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