INDIANAPOLIS -- As currently constructed, the Dallas Cowboys have 19 players scheduled to count more than $1 million against the 2012 salary cap.
Cornerback Terence Newman is slated to count $8.016 million against the cap, but the veteran could be released in order to create more room to sign players. If the Cowboys want to count Newman as a “June 1” cut and spread the salary-cap hit out over two years, they will have to wait until March 13 to release him.
The list does not include free agent linebacker Anthony Spencer. If the Cowboys decide to use the franchise tag on Spencer, then he would count $8.8 million against the cap in 2012. Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones did not rule out the possibility of signing Spencer to a multi-year deal, but that does not appear likely.
DeMarcus Ware has the highest cap figure at $10.301 million, followed by Tony Romo and Doug Free at $8.060 million apiece. Orlando Scandrick is scheduled to count $7.7 million as part of the extension he signed last summer.
The Cowboys have structured the contracts of Free and Scandrick in such a way that they could dramatically reduce their cap figures to create around $8.6 million in cap room.