2020 Salary ReCap NFC West Edition

It's that time of year again! Come March 18th, football season is officially back! No disrespect to the XFL, but there's nothing like the real thing. Now we can turn our attention to free agency and soon after, the NFL Draft. In advance of a potential new collective bargaining agreement (CBA), the NFL and NFL Players Association are projecting the league's salary cap to rise to $200 million this season, marking the seventh consecutive year the cap has increased by at least $10 million.

The league year and free agency doesn’t officially start until 4:00pm EST on March 18th. However the action will start on March 16th when teams are legally allowed to negotiate with impending free agents. Since there are just a few short weeks away I decided to assess each team’s salary cap situation and predict where the available cap space will go. I also included each team’s likeliest cap casualty. Make sure to check back each day for the latest installment as this will be released in 8 parts. Please remember that these numbers are subject to change as moves are made this week.  Up next we’re going to discuss the defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers and the rest of the NFC West. 

San Francisco 49ers

Available cap space $13,108,031

Shedding some salary and restructuring deals will need to happen in San Fran eventually with a handful of young superstars that will require big paydays. But for now  they'll most likely try to keep this roster together as much as possible. Getting a weapon for Jimmy G will be top priority with top wide out Emmanuel Sanders scheduled to become a free agent. The offseason will probably be relatively quiet in the Bay Area. 

Possible cap casualty

Jerick McKinnon has yet to play a game for the NFC Champions and may not get the chance. The Niners would save $4.5 million if they part ways with McKinnon, which should be a no brainer considering their depth at the position and the emergence of Raheem Mostert

Seattle Seahawks

Available cap space $44,665,847

Seattle has  a good amount of spending cash and they'll need it. They found themselves with one of the worst pass rushes last season and desperately need to fix that. After opting not to pick up Starting offensive tackle Germain Ifedi's fifth year option, they will also be focused on addressing that situation.

Possible cap casualty

Ed Dickson is on the final year of his 3 year deal and will be 33 this season. Seattle can get out of the contract with about $1 million in dead money. With a cap hit of $4.27 million and the signing of his former teammate Greg Olson, it looks like the former Super Bowl champion will be out of a job.

Arizona Cardinals

Available cap space $39,708,710

Being touted as the "hot spot" for free agents, a record of 5-10-1 with a rookie HC and QB, add in some close losses and things look to be heating up in the desert. The Cardinals still have a ways to go in a tough division, but they're definitely on the rise. GM Steve Keim has plenty of space to make sure that he re-signs blindside protector DJ Humphries and a reborn Kenyan Drake who fits perfectly in Kingsbury's offense. Getting some young defenders and a WR in the draft looks to be the plan.

Possible cap casualty

Maxx Williams was only targeted 19 times in 16 games last season. The former 2nd round pick has had an extraordinarily disappointing career so far. Arizona could save $2.9 million if they release the former Raven who is in the final year of his contract.

Los Angeles Rams

Available cap space $14,791,619

After a disappointing 2019 season, Sean McVay's Rams have little cap space with not many ways to create more. Restructuring Jared Goff's contract could be in the cards. Cutting veterans like Clay Matthews or Nickell Robey-Coleman would help  with the cap some, but they both had decent years. With not too many roster needs, I think L.A. will have a quiet offseason and hope to make some noise come kickoff.

Possible cap casualty

Malcolm Brown was originally supposed to be signed to a 1 year tender, but Detroit offered him a 2 year contract which the Rams matched. L.A. spent a 3rd round pick on talented running back Darrell Henderson and will look to get him more involved. Brown is solid, but scarcely gets on the field. L.A. can save $1.1 million by releasing him.

With the target firmly on their back, the 49ers will look to stave off the rest of the division. Seattle was hot on their heels on the way to their own playoff birth in 2019 With the emergence of Kyler Murray and the projected bounce back of the Rams, this free agency period will do a ton to determine this division in 2020. Stay tuned for our finale tomorrow as we jump into the NFC North!