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          NFL Nation

          Why Ravens rank second in NFL in dead money

          • Jamison Hensley, ESPN Staff WriterFeb 27, 2015, 11:00 AM ET
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              Jamison Hensley is a reporter covering the Baltimore Ravens for ESPN. Jamison joined ESPN in 2011, covering the AFC North before focusing exclusively on the Ravens beginning in 2013. Jamison won the National Sports Media Association Maryland Sportswriter of the Year award in 2018, and he authored a book titled: Flying High: Stories of the Baltimore Ravens. He was the Ravens beat writer for the Baltimore Sun from 2000-2011.
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          One reason why the Baltimore Ravens won't be able to do much in free agency is because of "dead money," which is the amount of space consumed by players no longer on the roster, whether they retired, were released or traded.

          The Ravens rank second in the NFL with $12.5 million in dead money, trailing only the Detroit Lions ($17.3 million). The Ravens' dead money essentially comes from two players, running back Ray Rice ($9.5 million) and receiver-returner Jacoby Jones ($2.625).

          That's why releasing Jones on Wednesday didn't help the Ravens from a cap perspective. Unless the Ravens designated him as a June 1 cut, the Ravens created $750,000 in cap space by cutting Jones but will still carry three years of his pro-rated bonus ($2.625 million) on this year's cap.

          Jones' dead money is only a fraction of the amount accounted by Rice, who is gone but is still affecting the Ravens' cap. Rice counts a whopping $9.5 million against the Ravens' salary cap for this season because he was released after June 1 last year. That meant his remaining three years of pro-rated bonus was split over two seasons, with the biggest hit coming in 2015.

          Consider this: Rice represents a higher cap number than all but three Ravens (defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, quarterback Joe Flacco and cornerback Lardarius Webb) and he's not going to play a snap for the team. With Jones, his dead money is more than the cap numbers of C.J. Mosley, Courtney Upshaw, Kelechi Osemele and Rick Wagner.

          If the cap is $143 million this year, Rice and Jones would eat up 8.5 percent of the Ravens' cap in 2015.

          Some of the blow of the Ravens' dead money is lessened by the fact that the Ravens carried over $5.8 million in unused cap from last year. The Ravens would still rank among the league leaders, given that only seven other teams have over $6 million in dead money.

          The Ravens' dead money will likely increase before free agency begins March 10. If the Ravens can't reach an extension with defensive tackle Ngata, they would carry $7.5 million in dead money in 2015 by cutting him. The release of defensive end Chris Canty and offensive lineman Gino Gradkowski would total less than $1 million combined in dead money.

          DEAD MONEY IN 2015

          (Through Thursday)

          Detroit Lions: $17.3 million

          Ravens: $12.5 million

          Dallas Cowboys: $9.8 million

          Pittsburgh Steelers: $8.8 million

          Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $7.9 million

          Source: ESPN Stats & Information