Answer: In 2005, it was set at $85.5 Million. Last year it was originally set to be approximately $94.5 Million. However, an extension to the CBA brought with it a new formula, which saw an expansion to approximately $102 Million. The cap in 2007 was $109 Million. In 2008 it was $116.7 Million. In 2009 it will be approximately $127 Million , which is up from the $123 originally projected.

Note that under the existing Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), 2009 is the last year of the cap. That is, the CBA will expire at the end of the 2010 season, and the final year of the agreement is uncapped. Thus, unless the CBA is extended or re-worked, the cap as we know it will end after this season. There are also special rules governing this final uncapped season, which I will address as we go along.

However, when the model was changed and the DGR expanded, the players and owners agreed to a smaller set percentage of the larger pot. The $102 M figure in 2006 was based on a 57% share of the 2006 projected Total Revenues as was the $109 M figure for 2007. In 2008, the percentage jumps to 57.5%, and the same percentage applies to 2009 as well. In 2010 and 2011 the percentage will be 58%. Note that if the projections see a shortfall in 2006 or 2007, when the dollar amounts were hard-coded in the CBA, then the 2008 and 2009 caps would be adjusted accordingly.

Note: The actual dollar amount of the Salary Cap can not be less than the actual dollar amount of any Salary Cap for the preceding year. So, for example, if Total Revenues should decline from one year to the next, the players are protected against a smaller associated Salary Cap. However, the Projected Benefits, plus the amount of the Salary Cap multiplied by the number of Teams in the NFL, can not exceed 61.68% of
Projected Total Revenues.

As we have seen, even though the percentage is lower, the expansion of the revenue "pot" still allows the players to come away from the table with more money in their pockets. Again, under the original DGR model, the salary cap was set at $94.5 Million in 2006 with the players receiving 64.5% of the DGR. Under the expanded revenue system, the cap increased to $102 Million with the players receiving 57% of the total revenue. That is an increase of almost 8%.

Answer: Yep. Under the new CBA, the players are guaranteed 50% of Leaguewide Total Revenues. In the event that player costs are less that 50% of Total Revenues, then, on or before April 15 of the next League Year, the NFL shall pay an amount equal to such deficiency directly to the players.

More specifically, beginning in 2006 each team had to pay a guaranteed Minimum Team Salary of 84% of the Salary Cap. Each year that percentage goes up by 1.2%, which means that it is 86.4% this season. However, the Minimum Team Salary cannot extend beyond 90% of the Salary Cap. Any shortfall in the Minimum Team Salary at the end of a league year has to be paid, on or before April 15 of the next league year, by the team(s) having such shortfall, directly to the players who were on that team's roster at any time during the season.

When the last CBA was ratified by the owners, they added a contention that they be allowed to end the agreement early should they be dissatisifed with the arrangement. Many of the smaller market teams soon discovered what only two teams (Buffalo and Cincinnati) originally feared at the time of the ratification: the massive increases to the minimum salary (see below) for players has placed an overwhelming burden on some teams' abilility to make a profit. Rigid rules governing profit sharing haven't helped. Thus, the owners have agreed to end the CBA after the 2010 season. It will be interesting to see whether or not the NFL will bring back something like the DGR to calculate the salary cap -- or if the salary cap will still be in effect at all. (The concept of a Rookie Salary Cap has also been tossed about.) The dynamics are certain to change given that the chief architects of the existing CBA (Paul Tagliabue and Gene Upshaw) are no longer in the picture.

Answer: Now we come to the tricky part.  The signing bonus IS part of the player's salary. So it counts against the cap. When determining team and player salary, the signing bonus will be prorated over the length of the contract.

For example, if a player signs a four-year deal with a $1 million signing bonus, $250,000 of that bonus will count toward team salary for each contract year ($1 million divided evenly over the four-year contract is $250,000 per year). If a team releases a player, the unamoratized bonus money (the remaining prorated bonus money) counts immediately against the cap.

In our example above, if the player is released after Year 1, the remaining $750,000 (the prorated signing bonus money for years 2-4) counts against the cap in Year 2 -- even though the player is no longer on the team's roster.

Again, let me take a moment to explain how important it is that the CBA be extended. The proration of the signing bonus cannot extend beyond two years after the close of the existing CBA. With the CBA currently set to expire in 2010, that would mean that the bonus proration has to be fully accounted for by the end of the 2012 season. Of course, if the CBA is not extended and there is no cap in place in 2010 and beyond, you are probably wondering why this even matters. Simply put, it matters for two reasons:

1. There could be major cap ramifications for 2009, the final capped year under that CBA.

2. If all goes well in the Spring 2009 meetings, and the extension are put in place -- the cap situations associated with existing contracts will obviously still need to be dealt with.

An expression that was thrown about repeatedly during the various labor meetings is "cash over cap". Well, these signing bonuses are what insiders were talking about, when they brought up that term. One of the things that held up negotiations amongst the owners with the last CBA extension (back in 2006) was the move to place some kind of cap on the amount of signing bonus money that could be pushed into future years for cap accounting purposes. Although there was no cap on signing bonuses, there was a limit put in place (for 2006) that signing bonuses could only be prorated for up to five (5) years -- but that moved up to six (6) years in 2007.

Answer:  After June 1, the team can stretch their salary cap liability over the next 2 seasons. Let's look at our example above, where a player signs a big contract for 4 years, including a $1 million signing bonus.

If the player is cut after the first year of the contract, the remaining $750,000 of the "un-amoratized" signing bonus hits the cap immediately (accelerates).  However, if he is cut after June 1, the team can spread that money over Year 2 and 3 of the contract instead of taking the full brunt of the cap hit in Year 2.

Doing this will save $500,000 against the cap hit for Year 2.

Clearly, this practice is a nice way of freeing up cap space in a given year.  Note, however, that the money still has to be accounted for against the cap -- and the remaining $500,000 that was never accounted for will hit the cap in Year 3.  In essence, many NFL teams have mortgaged their future by overusing this practice, whereby they continue to pay against the cap for players who have not been on the roster for over a year.

This is another important benefit that will go out the door if the CBA is not extended. Namely, with no cap in 2010, teams would not have had the luxury of being able to extend this acceleration beyond 2009.

Answer:  The short answer is simply that NO team CAN go over the Salary Cap.  Note that every contract must go through the NFL League Office before the deal can be made official.  Presumably, one of the things the league must do at this time is determine whether or not the contract would violate the NFL's Salary Cap.  If the deal does violate the cap, then the NFL will reject it.

If a team releases or trades a player and the signing bonus acceleration puts a team over the Salary Cap, the team will have seven days to conform with the Salary Cap. However, they may not sign any players until there is room to do so under the Salary Cap.

There have been instances in which a team has managed to sneak a cap evading contract by the league.  Upon further review, the violations were caught by the league and the respective teams were penalized.  Penalties include fines and/or forfeiture of draft picks.  In recent history both the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Francisco 49ers have been penalized draft picks, while the 49ers' front office personnel (Carmen Policy and Dwight Clark) were also fined.

Answer:  As stated, the latest (and 5th) extension to the CBA was passed by the NFLPA and owners on March 8, 2006. Listed below are the changes that were made:

1. Extension through 2011 rather than 2007. (Which the owners later agreed to curtail.)



2. The Salary Cap % will be based on an newly defined and expanded revenue stream, which includes additional sources not covered under the original DGR. That Salary Cap % varies from 57% to 58% during the life of the CBA. (See Question
1.2)


3. Minimum salaries have changed as follows:




	Years	2009
0		$310,000
1		$385,000
2		$460,000
3		$535,000
4-6		$620,000
7-9		$745,000
10+		$845,000




4. All minimum salaries for veterans (plus up to $40,000 signing bonus) with at least four years of experience will only count $460,000 against the team salary cap for qualifying contracts.
   
5. Teams can sign rookies selected in the first half of the first round of the NFL Draft to a contract that is at most 6 (six) years. Players taken in the second half of the first round can only be signed to deal with a maximum 5 (five) year duration. Players taken after round one cannot be signed to a deal longer than four (4) years. Meanwhile, rookie contracts can not be renegociated in the first two (2) years.
   
6. Prior to the start of the league year, teams may designate up to two (2) veteran players that they will cut after June 1 to spread out the signing bonus escalation (See 1.9b). In so designating them, the team allows these players to become free agents at the start of the free agency period -- although their cap liability remains with the original team just as it would have if the player had stayed on the roster until after June 1.
   
7. Just as is the case with the Franchise Tag, if the designated player signs the the one-year Transition tender, then that salary is guaranteed. Also, for both Transition and Franchise tags, the old March 17 date goes out the window. Under the old CBA, teams had until March 17 to reach an agreement with the Transition/Franchise Player -- or risk losing the tag for the duration of the eventual long-term deal. Under the new agreement teams have until July 15.
   
8. If either the NFLPA or the owners are unhappy with the updated CBA, they may elect to make it null and void after four (4) years.

Stay tuned to see what changes (if any) may come about with (hopefully) a 6th extension to the CBA.