As the salary ceiling is expected to shrink during a unique low season, the Green Bay Packers are willing to push dollars into the coming years in an effort to maximize their ability to win now.
General manager Brian Gutekunst said Monday he doesn’t know the exact salary cap for 2021, but the Packers have a “pretty good idea where it will be” and expect it to “go down,” complicating things for a team. with so much money already allocated to next year’s cap.
In response to the challenge, Gutekunst is poised to restructure existing contracts and push pledges for years to come to help the Packers hold their roster together and remain a Super Bowl contender.
“We have done that in the past, we will certainly have to do that this year,” Gutekunst said on Monday. “The situation our football team is in now, I think we have one goal in mind. And if there’s a chance to take some risks to help us win now, we’re definitely in that mode. “
Even if the salary cap hits in the $ 180-185 million range, the Packers are still over the cap and will have to make several adjustments to operate during this low season. It’s possible the salary ceiling will drop all the way to the bottom of $ 175 million, although current projections look a bit more optimistic based on 2020 earnings.
Gutekunst still expects a significant drop, saying he doesn’t expect the cap to stay anywhere close to the level.
“I expect it to go down, that’s how we plan it,” said Gutekunst.
Like the Packers, 31 other NFL teams will likely have to scrap the proverbial salary cap for a year or two to accommodate a shrinking cap in 2021.
“Obviously with this year’s situation, I think most teams will be kicking money to try and keep their teams together, and it certainly won’t be any different,” said Gutekunst.
The Packers have options to create space. As noted by Ken Ingalls in our roster breakdown, veterans Aaron Rodgers, Davante Adams, David Bakhtiari, Billy Turner, Za’Darius Smith and Adrian Amos all have contracts that could be restructured to free up significant cap space by 2021. the pressure on the cap this year, but more guaranteed money and cap obligations on future caps.
For example, the Packers will almost certainly convert much of Bakhtiari’s upcoming roster bonus into a signing bonus, freeing up cap space now, but also having to spread over the length of his new deal, adding new money to future limits. .
When asked about redoing parts of Rodgers’ deal, Gutekunst usually avoided giving a straight answer, but he assumes several experienced players will need reworked deals or payouts to make everything work in 2021.
The Packers could also release veterans like Rick Wagner, Dean Lowry, Preston Smith, or Christian Kirksey to create more pet with no future commitments.
The coming months will be crucial to shaping the squad in 2021 and understanding the team’s long-term plans for next year, but Gutekunst said his team is comfortable with what lies ahead and is ready to launch a “Difficult decision” to make about his selection.
“It is a unique year, it is very challenging. Of course we are not the only team with these challenges,” said Gutekunst. “I feel really comfortable, we’ve been working on this all year round to get ready for what’s going to happen in the next three or four months.”