The NFL salary cap is fake?
Well, not exactly. But close enough. But indisputably, "Cap Hell'' fake.
And suddenly, more than ever, Dallas Cowboys bosses Jerry and Stephen Jones have no excuses for not being "buyers'' when March 12 and NFL free agency rolls around.
The NFL on Wednesday announced to its member teams the cap for the 2025 season will be somewhere between $277.5 and $281.5 million. This is being billed as a "surprise'' by some who aren't paying attention, as CowboysCountry.com has been reporting for almost a year that would would be a jump to around $275 million.
Now, what to do about it?
The Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles and their GM Howie Roseman have become the masters at the usage of the tools - "exploiting'' the rules, to some.
The Kansas City Chiefs, back-to-win Super Bowl winners, have done the same thing.
And look at the results?
Take “void years,” for instance. (Ironically enough, Jerry Jones vs. the 49ers' Carmen Policy in the 1990's helped create this tool.) Void years equal "Flexibility.'' They are simply added years built into any particular players contract extension that’ll allow GM’s to “flex” “void” or “defer” guaranteed money further down the line.
Examples? Saquon Barkley has void years in Philly. Patrick Mahomes has void years in KC.
And this is where Dallas' potential $100 million in cap room that we've been explaining for a year comes into focus ...)
Dak Prescott’s current contract runs through 2028. Meaning in 2029 he would become a free agent again. But there are four extra VOID YEARS tacked onto his deal that run through 2032.
Those void years serve as a dumping ground, and yes, eventually the "piper must be paid.'' But that's not "hell''; it's just accounting.
We like to put it this way: “The cap constraints are fake today but they are real tomorrow.''
And if you win today ... why are you worried about possible cap imbalance a half-decade from now?
Part of the beauty of the whole "void years'' thing is that whatever money you technically “void” into the future, is often at least partly accounted for as a result of the ever-ballooning cap itself.
So if your roster has $285 million worth of players, but the cap is set at $255 Million like it was in 2024, then you can simply restructure and flex $30 million onto the 2025 books.
The cap jumped $30 mil from 2023 to 2024. And now it's about to jump again, by about $25 mil.
Once again, if your roster reflects that you’ve overspent ... you watch and wait as it jumps another $30 mil the next year, then in theory, you’re back to even.
The Cowboys used to own the blueprint. Now the Eagles do. And that's OK ... as we reference back to the realities of "Cap Hell'' ...
The Eagles currently have $400 million worth of contractual spending allocated to future “void years.''
That’s essentially like paying for two Dak Prescotts for four years after both Dak Prescotts are even competing for you on your roster!
Wild concept, right? But a brilliant one if if helps the team win ... just like Deion Sanders' 1995 deal in Dallas - one of the first of its kind - did here.
For whatever reason, Cowboys COO Stephen Jones has convinced part of the audience (but hopefully not his dad) that future debt is The Devil.
But in reality? As we've been reporting here for a year now, Dallas' setup is quite heavenly: Flip the switch on Dak's deal to move money, do the same on CeeDee Lamb's and sign Micah Parsons ... and the Cowboys have an immediate $100 million in cap room to go on a March spending spree.
There is now a new cap number. But the rules and the tools have not changed.
The cap is "fake today, real tomorrow.'' "Cap Hell'' is a myth. And the Joneses should be busy celebrating their good fortune here.
There’s a way if you have the will. And we won't let Jerry and Stephen Jones get away with trying to convince you otherwise.
