The Detroit Lions aren’t in a bad position right now, but here’s how they can add more than $20 million in 2023 salary cap space.
As we sit right now, the Detroit Lions are in a pretty good spot. Coming off a winning season, they have four picks in the top-60 of April’s draft and they are in the top half of the league in cap space (numbers as of Jan. 21).
Over The Cap: $15,050,618 in cap space (12th-most in the league)
Spotrac: $18,109,106 in cap space (11th-most in the league)
Having such a young roster, as a roster build continues toward a third season under general manager Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell, means the Lions just don’t have a lot of older players (one over 30 years old, Michael Brockers). And thus, naturally, they have very few bad or bloated contracts weighing down their books.
The Lions dead money situation, which was not great the last couple years after trading Matthew Stafford and cutting Trey Flowers, has cleaned up rather nicely. According to Over The Cap, they have $304,552 in dead money on the 2023 books right now. At a glance, that’s one of the 10 lowest dead money numbers in the league right now.
Since more is better than less, at least in this situation, here’s how the Lions can create more than $20 million in 2023 cap space.
How the Detroit Lions can pretty easily create over $20 million in 2023 cap space
1. Cut DT Michael Brockers
This is the easiest move the Lions have this offseason. Brockers played in one game after the Week 6 bye this season. Even that was only 12 snaps in Week 11 against the New York Giants, when the defensive line was injury-thinned and there was a short week ahead before the Thanksgiving game.
To his credit, as if he had much choice if he wanted to stick around and wasn’t going to ask to be released, Brockers embraced a behind the scenes leadership role when he was a weekly healthy scratch. But he has not produced much of anything in two seasons as a Lion, even when he played a lot in 2021, and the marked improvement the run defense showed without him this season (leaving aside Week 16 in Carolina) has to be noted. It was also surely noticed within the building.
Via Over The Cap, here are the cap implications for cutting Brockers.
Pre and post-June 1 cut: Cap Savings- $10 million; Dead money: $3.975 million
Cap Savings Tally: $10 million
2. Cut Charles Harris
After a career-saving first season with the Lions in 2021, when he led the team with 7.5 sacks, 2022 was a disappointing and dismal follow-up for Harris. He was not productive when he did play (one sack and 14 total tackles in six games), and a groin injury limited him to two games after Week 4. He was placed on IR in late-November. While he could have returned in Week 17, he did not play again and there were no indications he was close to being activated.
Harris signed a two-year deal to come back to Detroit last offseason. But it’s safe to say he has been usurped in the edge rusher pecking order, and his role for next season is very much up in the air. His 2023 cap hit, just shy of $8 million, is the 10th-highest on the team right now. That feels a little steep for someone who’s likely to be a backup edge rusher, and possibly not a very productive one.
Via Over The Cap, here the financial implications attached to Harris.
Pre-June 1 cut: Cap Savings: $4,011,666; Dead Money: $3,976,667
Post-June 1 cut: Cap Savings: $6 million, Dead Money: $1,988,333
Cap Savings Tally: $14 million (pre-June 1)
3. Cut OG Halapoulivaati Vaitai
Vaitai had a solid season in 2021, and being tabbed as the weak link on one of the best offensive lines is not a huge knock on him really. But he wound up missing this entire season due to a back injury, and while it’s fair to assume he’ll be healthy for next season it’s hardly a lock. Without him, with an injury to eventual replacement Evan Brown mixed in, right guard became a real weakness for the Lions at times this season.
Vaitai was given a big contract by the previous regime in Detroit, and with few other multi-year deals to use for restructures to open up a little cap space his contract has been restructured twice. Those restructures have of course kicked some money into future years in exchange for some current cap relief, changing the financial implications attached to moving on from him down the road ever so slightly. But it’s been enough to end up noticeable from where those numbers started.
The Lions should be looking somewhere in free agency and/or the draft for a right guard, if not to replace Vaitai next season than to do so pretty soon. He has two years left on his contract, and he will not be extended.
But that future minus “Big V” could very well be now. In some respect, it should be now–or should I say this offseason.
Via Over The Cap once again, here’s what it’d look like for the Lions to cut Vaitai.
Pre-June 1 cut: Cap Savings: $6,551,805; Dead money: $5,896,338
Post-June 1 cut: Cap Savings: $9.5 million; Dead money: $2,948,194