The NFL has seemingly completely recovered from its pandemic-related shortfalls and then some, to the tune of a record salary cap.
On Monday, the league informed teams that the salary cap for the 2023 season would be $224.8 million per team — a new high after 2022’s $208.2 million record, per multiple reports.
Due to decreased revenue due to the 2020 COVID-affected season, the 2021 cap decreased to $182.5 million after reaching a then-record $198.2 million in 2020. After two huge increases in a row, the NFL appears to be back on track.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero points out that the collective bargaining agreement is a revenue-sharing deal that has added enough value from the NFL’s new 17th regular season game and new media contracts to justify continuous raises in the salary cap.
One of the league’s new revenue streams is coming from Google, who just agreed to take on the league’s “NFL Sunday Ticket” package for a reported $2 billion per season — with the possibility to rise to $3 billion annually by the end of the seven-season deal.
With the new salary cap number, teams will begin navigating free agency.
Per Spotrac, the Chicago Bears — holders of the No. 1 pick in April’s NFL Draft — are in the best position to do so with a total cap hit of just $135.7 million.
Conversely, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers boast the current highest cap hit in the league at $285.5 million.
