 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - NOVEMBER 07: Matt Ryan #2 of the Atlanta Falcons reacts against the New Orleans Saints during a game at the Caesars Superdome on November 07, 2021 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) Show The Atlanta Falcons seemingly never make the NFL headlines these days for positive reasons and that is yet again the case as they deal with the fallout from trading Matt Ryan. Ryan will still account for $40-million against the Falcon’s cap despite playing for the Colts becoming the largest dead cap hit in NFL history. It is important to point out here that Ryan’s cap number is due to the fact the quarterback kept restructuring his contract to attempt to create cap room to build a contending roster. A contending roster Atlanta was never able to put around him after their 2016 run to the Super Bowl. You can look at Atlanta’s full cap projections here, Ryan isn’t the only massive cap hit as the team continues to deal with Julio’s contract as well. Combined Jones Ryan will account for right around $56-million against the cap speaking to the situation the Atlanta front office has created for themselves. The Atlanta Falcons will be paying a combined $62-million in dead cap for the 2022 seasonJulio Jones, Dante Fowler Jr., Matt Ryan, and Tyeler Davidson account for the majority of Atlanta’s dead cap problem leaving the Falcons with right around $8-million in projected room not accounting for Mariota leaving Atlanta with few options the rest of the off-season. Cutting Ryan was committing to a year of rebuilding and signing Mariota was further confirmation of this. Mariota will serve as a bridge as Atlanta spends one final season in cap misery before having well over $100-million to spend next off-season. Atlanta will have essentially fixed all of their cap woes within two seasons of moves choosing to accelerate that by painfully trading Matt Ryan. The way the Falcons opted to send Ryan out was questionable at best. However, they have set Atlanta up in a great position to chase a top quarterback and be able to chase any of the top free agents in 2023. A small gleam of hope in what has been an off-season that seemingly could not have gone worse. The Falcons made some history by trading Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts for a third-round pick. By moving their franchise quarterback, they'll now assume what's reportedly the largest single dead-money hit in NFL history. The transaction saddled the Falcons with $40.525 million in dead money, per OverTheCap.com. That's, you know, a lot. It's also not all. RELATED CONTENT: Combine that with dead money from Dante Fowler and Tyeler Davison cuts and last year's post-June 1 Julio Jones trade – the designation splits the dead-money hit over two seasons – and the Falcons have $62 million in dead money. That term signifies the amount on your cap that you can't spend. It sits idle, unable to help sign players to help the team be competitive. That's bad news. In the Falcons situation, it can also be a good thing. They’ve been in serious salary-cap trouble for a while, with general manager Terry Fontenot and head coach Arthur Smith inheriting a cap situation that has hinders their ability to fortify the roster as they'd like. It has prevented them from re-signing some of their own free agents, who reached a price point the Falcons were too handcuffed to match. It is, however, a temporary affliction. The Ryan trade sped up the healing process considerably. They'll get roughly $8 million in cap space this year, but the real benefit is getting Ryan's massive contract, renegotiated time and again over the years, off the books after 2022. So, as it stands right now, the Falcons are set to have well over $100 million in cap space next year. That is expected to, at long last, free the Falcons from difficult salary-cap constraints. "Yeah, we're taking it on the chin this year, but, taking it on the chin this year and now you look at where we are next year, it's significant," general manager Terry Fontenot said during a Wednesday press conference. "If not, if we don't do that, and again, we could have restructured his contract or done something with his contract and kept him this year and then we'd have still had – if we traded him after the season or if we keep him next year, then we're still in a really tough salary cap situation. "With this, we take it on the chin this year, and it's our job to find value in free agency and to draft well and to put a good football team on the field this year even with that dead cap. It's an obstacle but we look at it as an opportunity, and that's our job. We're not making excuses about it. "But us deciding to take it on the chin right now will really – it makes a significant difference for us next year [and] in the future." The Falcons ultimately chose to make a bold move. They could've gone for the status quo but renegotiating Ryan's deal again, essentially kicking the can down the road. "We couldn't have kept Matt Ryan the way the current contract was," Fontenot said. "In order to field a team, we were going to have to – we didn't want to do anything with Matt Ryan's contract last year, but we were handcuffed. We had to in order to field a football team, and it would have been the same thing this year. So, we had to do that. "When we looked at doing that and the impact that has on us next year, then we're continuing to do the same thing, and then now we're in another situation next year where it's hard to sign and re-sign players." 1 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 walks through the tunnel before the game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on Saturday, August 21, 2021. (Photo by Adler Garfield/Atlanta Falcons) Adler Garfield/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 2 / 20 Scott Kelby/Scott Kelby
3 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan talks to reporters during NFL football training camp, Monday, July 30, 2012, in Flowery Branch, Ga. (AP Photo/John Amis) John Amis 4 / 20 Atlanta Falcons' Matt Ryan hands off to Devonta Freeman before the NFL Super Bowl 51 football game against the New England Patriots Sunday, Feb. 5, 2017, in Houston. (AP Photo/Tim Donnelly) Tim Donnelly/Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. 5 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan during the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015 at the Georgia Dome. The Falcons lost 23-20 in overtime, going to 6-2 on the season. Photo by Kevin D. Liles Kevin D. Liles/Kevin Liles Photography 6 / 20 May 06, 2019 - Matt Ryan poses for a lifestyle portrait at the Atlanta Falcons Training Facility in Flowery Branch, Georgia. (Photo by Kate T. Parker) Kate T. Parker/Atlanta Falcons 7 / 20 Images of the new Atlanta Falcons 2020 uniforms. (Photo by the Atlanta Falcons) Rob Foldy/©2020 Gary Land 8 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 warmups before the game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, September 12, 2021. (Photo by Jacob Gonzalez/Atlanta Falcons) Jacob Gonzalez/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 9 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 calls a play in the huddle during the first half against the Philadelphia Eagles at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, September 12, 2021. (Photo by Jacob Gonzalez/Atlanta Falcons) Jacob Gonzalez/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 10 / 20 Behind-the-scenes images from Atlanta Falcons content capture days on June 7, 2021. Kara Durrette/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 11 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 poses for a portrait during 2021 AF Creative Days at CW Davis Middle School in Flowery Branch, Georgia, on Monday, June 7, 2021. (Photo by Dakota Williams/Atlanta Falcons) Dakota Williams/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 12 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 runs out before the game against the Washington Football Team at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, October 3, 2021. (Photo by Brandon Magnus/Atlanta Falcons) Brandon Magnus/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 13 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 prepares to take the field prior to a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, December 5, 2021. (Photo by Brandon Magnus/Atlanta Falcons) Brandon Magnus/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 14 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 prepares to take a snap during the second half against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, December 5, 2021. (Photo by Dakota Williams/Atlanta Falcons) Dakota Williams/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 15 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 warms up prior to a game against the Detroit Lions at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, December 26, 2021. (Photo by Adam Hagy/Atlanta Falcons) Adam Hagy/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 16 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 warms up before facing the Detroit Lions at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, December 26, 2021. (Photo by Shanna Lockwood/Atlanta Falcons) Shanna Lockwood/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 17 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 warms up prior to a game against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina on Sunday, December 12, 2021. (Photo by Shanna Lockwood/Atlanta Falcons) Shanna Lockwood/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 18 / 20 Matt Ryan #2 of the Atlanta Falcons prior to the game against the Detroit Lions at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, December 26th, 2021. (Photo by Adam Hagy/Atlanta Falcons) Adam Hagy/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons 19 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 huddles before the game against the New Orleans Saints at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, January 9th, 2022. (Photo by Kyle Hess/Atlanta Falcons) Kyle Hess/© 2022 Atlanta Falcons 20 / 20 Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan #2 warms up prior to a game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York on Sunday, January 2, 2022. (Photo by Brandon Magnus/Atlanta Falcons) Brandon Magnus/© 2021 Atlanta Falcons While clearing so much dead money and a massive contract off the books will help in 2023 and beyond, it makes it harder to build a competitive roster this season. That doesn't mean the Falcons want to call this experience part of a rebuild. That's a four-letter word in Flowery Branch, something they've never wanted to be associated with. Last summer, Fontenot said the word was insulting to those who worked so hard on the overall product, that it implies the Falcons aren't trying to win. Smith called it a "transition," which is a fair and appropriate term for a squad with cap issues now moving on from a franchise quarterback who was here 14 seasons, without a clear-cut candidate to be his long-term successor. While the Falcons are moving through a somewhat awkward period, they've vowed to compete for every accomplishment they can earn. "The reason we hate the word 'rebuild' is because when we're talking to Casey Hayward and he's excited about coming home and competing right now," Fontenot said. "He's a real talented player that has done some really good things in this league. He's not coming somewhere to lose and he's not – again, Lorenzo [Carter], guys outside the building. When Younghoe [Koo] extends or when Jake {Matthews] extends, these guys are excited about going out there and competing. "And yes, it's a challenge with all the dead money this year. It's a challenge but taking it all on this year – we're excited about what we're going to do this year because we're going to do the best we can and we're going to go out and compete, and then next year it's significant when you look at where we are. "Again, I know you guys have all looked at it and the significant impact this will make on us next year, but we would never say that because it's just not fair. It's not fair to the players here. We've got 17 games next year, and we're going to go out and compete in every single one of them." How much cap will the Falcons have in 2023?Falcons News: Atlanta has $74 million in cap space to spend in 2023.
Who has the most NFL cap space 2023?The Chicago Bears are No. 1 with an astounding $110.8 million of projected room under the cap.
What will the salary cap be in 2023?In September, the NBA raised its salary cap projection for the 2023-24 season from $133 million to $134 million with a luxury tax threshold of $162 million. That's an 8.37 percent increase from the current 2022-23 campaign's $122.7 million salary cap and a 7.81 percent increase in the tax threshold from $150.3 million.
What NFL teams have the most cap space next year?The cap figures below were provided by OverTheCap.com and are as of Oct 29.
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