PHILADELPHIA – There seems to be a lot of handwringing about the Philadelphia Eagles’ salary cap and its possible impact on the team’s 2015 roster. As Aaron Rodgers would say, “Relax.”
It is possible that Chip Kelly will decideJeremy Maclin is not worth the estimated $12 million salary he would get if the Eagles place the franchise tag on him. It is also possible that Kelly will seek to reduce LeSean McCoy’s cap number, which is just under $12 million. There is always the possibility Kelly will decide to go cheaper at both positions and move on from the two veterans.
But Kelly will not be forced to do either of those things because of the Eagles’ salary-cap situation. That’s a point that Kelly himself made the day after the season ended.
“I think since I've been here, one of the attractive things about this job, there are not cap issues,” Kelly said. “You don't look at it and go, ‘Oh, my God. We're going to have to cut 12 players because we're going to be $40 million over the cap.’ “
The 2015 NFL salary cap is expected to be about $140 million. The Eagles are already under that number, but still have a fair numbers of roster spots to fill. Maclin, as one example, does not count under their 2015 cap because he simply doesn’t have a 2015 contract yet.
The Eagles also can create a lot more cap space if they choose to do so. Several players with large cap numbers – McCoy, Trent Cole ($11.65 million), DeMeco Ryans ($6.9 million), Cary Williams ($8.17 million), Riley Cooper ($4.8 million), Brent Celek ($4.8 million), James Casey ($4 million), Todd Herremans ($5.2 million), Evan Mathis ($6.5 million) – could be in line for restructured deals that convert salary to bonus money. Some could be released.
The key point is this: The Eagles’ leading rusher and leading receiver, McCoy and Maclin, are not in danger for salary cap reasons. Kelly could choose to allot their salary cap space in other ways, but that would be his choice.
The Eagles signed McCoy’s deal in May 2012, just three years ago. All McCoy has done since is rush for 3,166 yards despite missing four games in 2012. He led the NFL with 1,607 rushing yards in 2013 and, despite injuries along the offensive line, was third in the league in 2014.
Given that production and his age (McCoy is 26), if his salary cap number is too high for 2015 then the Eagles agreed to a terrible contract.
The real reason the Eagles’ cap is so flexible isn’t so much astute cap management as it is the lack of a market-value quarterback on the roster. In Dallas, for instance, Tony Romo’s $27.7 million cap number in 2015 consumes 21.2 percent of the Cowboys’ entire salary cap. Nick Foles and Matt Barkley combined consume 1.17 percent of the Eagles’ salary cap for 2015.
Maclin has a choice in free agency, unless the Eagles choose to use the franchise tag. The Eagles have the rights to McCoy and no pressing financial reason to relinquish them. That’s the bottom line here.