Salary-cap experts weigh in on Raiders’ options. Can room be made for a star pass-rusher?
While the Las Vegas Raiders figure out who their next defensive coordinator will be, the team will have salary-cap issues with which to deal.
It shouldn’t be a huge obstacle in the way of their goal to end a postseason drought, even if it means freeing up enough room under the cap to go after some defensive help while keeping the key players they already have on the roster.
According to Over The Cap, the Raiders are at least $7.4 above the threshold but it won’t take much to eliminate that deficit, salary-cap expert Jason Fitzgerald said.
He said he wouldn’t be surprised “if they actually redid a contract or two, as they have recently done that with players who have roster bonuses due in March the following year.”
Fitzgerald said defensive end Carl Nassib (three years, $25 million), and linebackers Nick Kwiatkoski (three years, $21 million) and Cory Littleton (three years, $35.25 million) could fall in that category. The Raiders just restructured Littleton’s contract in September.
If the contracts were reworked, Fitzgerald said, the Raiders could have a net savings of $1.9 million for Nassib, $1.1 million for Kwiatkoski and $3.3 million for Littleton.
He added they could gain even more if they add void years to Nassib’s and Kwiatkoski’s deals.
Here is what he said about other Raiders players:
▪ Wide receiver Tyrell Williams (Signed a four-year, $44.4 million contract in 2019): He missed the entire season because of a torn labrum. He’s only played in six games after signing with the Raiders. Fitzgerald imagines Williams will be cut, freeing up $11.6 million.
▪ Defensive back Lamarcus Joyner (four years, $42 million in 2019): He joined the Raiders in 2018 and has played in 28 games, starting 16. If Joyner is cut, the Raiders would save $8.7 million, Fitzgerald said.
▪ Guard Gabe Jackson (five years, $55 million in 2017): After missing some time in 2018 and 2019 due to an injury, he played in alI 16 games this past season. He’s another player Fitzgerald said that might be in that cut list, saving $8.6 million.
Tackle Trent Brown played two games this past season. Fitzgerald could see a scenario where the Raiders could restructure his contract for cap relief.
“I thought they paid through the nose for a player they were not going to play on the left side and one who had questions about durability and character,” Fitzgerald said of Brown. “I thought they misread the market a bit.”
Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota could be cut or dealt, if needed.
Fitzgerald said if the cap remains at $175 million, he projects the Raiders to be about $15 million over — after processing future signings.
“If it comes in at the higher number that’s been floated about, then they will be about $5 million under,” he said. “I’d expect them to free up $30 (million) to $40 million without too much trouble.”
What Spotrac is saying
Michael Ginnitti, co-founder and editor over at Spotrac, a website that provides contract and transactions updates on all the major U.S. pro sports, also gave his thoughts on the Raiders’ best options.
▪ Quarterbacks Derek Carr and Marcus Mariota: He doesn’t see the team moving on from both of its top two quarterbacks, but cutting ties with one of them would make some sense.
“If Carr isn’t the future, then you can clear $19.6 million right away by moving on,” he said. “The same could be said for Mariota, clearing his full $10.7 million. I’m not sure either Carr or Mariota is a tradeable entity because of the volume of quarterbacks that are set to become available this offseason.”
▪ Brown: He can see a scenario in which the Raiders convert all of Brown’s 2021 salary into a bonus and add a few “dummy” years to the end of his contract, thus saving $9.5 million.
“I know there’s growing buzz about moving on from him, but I believe the team has bigger holes to fill at this point,” he said.
▪ Williams: An outright release makes sense for the Raiders here, after missing every game this past season.
“I can’t imagine Tyrell Williams is allowed to steal any more money from this team,” he said. “Especially with $11.6 million to be saved by moving on. His price tag is likely too steep for a trade, so an outright release is probably in order.”
He added Joyner falls in the same category as Williams because “the production just doesn’t come close to matching the money here. He offers $8.7 million of savings.”
▪ Littleton: Ginnitti said Littleton has a $5.5 million roster bonus that could be converted into a signing bonus, clearing over $4 million worth of space in 2021.
He added the Raiders made a sizable restructure to his deal last summer and believes it doesn’t make sense to add even more dead money to the 2023 season.
Among other players, Ginnitti said, Jackson and guard Richie Incognito are both bubble players based on age, production and cost, but only if the team is able to upgrade them this spring.
Ginnitti sees the Raiders bringing back wide receiver Nelson Agholor on a “cost controlled contract after a “slight resurrection” of his career that saw him finish as the team’s second-leading pass catcher in 2020 in terms of yards and touchdowns,
He said the Raiders also will need about $6.7 million for their draft pool in 2021.
“This team needs defensive linemen and edge rushers, maybe more than any team in the league,” Ginnitti said. “With players like Fletcher Cox, J.J. Watt, Henry Anderson, Geno Atkins and Dee Ford likely heading off their respective rosters, this is an area I’d like to see Las Vegas really throw some money at.”
The only way the Raiders could go after Cox, Watt, Anderson, Atkins or Ford is if they are waived by their current teams or if a trade can be worked out.
The Raiders will need to make the right moves this offseason to get the team back to the playoffs next season.
This story was originally published January 10, 2021 at 6:27 PM with the headline "Salary-cap experts weigh in on Raiders’ options. Can room be made for a star pass-rusher?."
