The Detroit Lions have, by his own estimation anyway, had had the best run in free agency of Brad Holmes' tenure as general manager. The most recent notable piece of that was the signing of veteran guard Kevin Zeitler, in a move that seems to have upgraded their offensive line.
An initial report of Zeitler one-year deal with the Lions had it at a base value of $6 million. Of course we'd find out how true that was the details of the deal came out.
This past week, the details of Zeitler's contract came. Via Over The Cap, here's what it looks like.
Base salary: $1.21 million (fully guaranteed)
Signing bonus: $4.28 million (full guaranteed)
Per game roster bonus: $510,000 (total, $30,000 per game)
2024 cap hit: $5.94 million
Since he played 15 games for the Ravens last season, $450,000 of Zeitler's per game roster bonus is considered "likely to be earned" for 2024 salary cap purposes. If he plays all 17 games next season, the Lions would take on $60,000 in cap adjustment for 2025.
Of note here is there is not a void year on Zeitler's deal to prorate his signing bonus through.
Detroit Lions' updated 2024 cap space with Kevin Zeitler deal on the books
The terms of the deal the Lions signed quarterback Nate Sudfeld to this past week are not known yet, but it won't be a big cap hit for 2024. The pending offer sheet the 49ers gave to tight end Brock Wright will possibly wipe $2.985 million off their books if they don't match it. The offer sheet, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, is three years, $12 million.
But with what we concretely know here on March 30, here's the updated 2024 cap space for the Lions. The pending situation with attempting to void cornerback Cameron Sutton's $10.5 million base salary for this year after his release is notable once June 1 comes and goes, since he was designated as a post-June 1 cut.
Over The Cap: $26,614,808 (eighth-most in the league); $23,793, 856 (effective cap space)
Spotrac: $21,606,905 ("Top 51";13th-most in the league)