On March 11th, 2026, the new league year for the NFL officially starts. At 4:00 PM EST, teams have the ability to make official contract agreements after the tampering period, which starts on March 9th. At the beginning of the new league year, all teams must be under the salary cap ceiling, which is set at $301.2 million for 2026.
According to Overthecap, there are five teams that are still above the cap. The Minnesota Vikings are $1.4 million over, the Green Bay Packers are $1.9 million over, the Detroit Lions are $6.7 million over, the Baltimore Ravens are $12.1 million over, and the Buffalo Bills are $12.9 million over.
Minnesota could clear some cap space by restructuring T.J. Hockenson’s contract, which currently has a hit of $21.3 million in 2026. Additionally, the Vikings front office has stated that they are open to shopping Jonathan Greenard, which would alleviate them of at least partially of his $22.1 million cap hit.
The action of restructuring Xavier McKinney’s contract saved the Packers $9.2 million in 2026; however, Green Bay is not yet done with cap arrangements. To be underneath $301.2 million by Wednesday, the Packers could restructure Josh Jacobs’ or Rashan Gary’s contract, who have $14.5 million and $28 million cap numbers in 2026, respectively.
After releasing Graham Glasgow and trading David Montgomery to the Houston Texans, Detroit has made moves to get under the ceiling. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Alim McNeill, and Penei Sewell are among those who have significant 2026 cap numbers that have contracts which are easily restructurable.
With Lamar Jackson set to receive $74.5 million in 2026, the Ravens have to pull a lever or two to erase their $12.1 million deficit. Eric DeCosta could decide to restructure Jackson’s contract, as he is currently guaranteed only $29 million. Roquan Smith’s $32.7 million cap number could also be easily fixed with no guaranteed money in 2026.
The releases of Curtis Samuel, Taron Johnson, Dane Jackson, and Taylor Rapp were cap friendly moves, yet Buffalo still finds themselves in $12.9 million of trouble. Restructuring Dawson Knox’s or Dion Dawkins’ contracts would have great impact, making their $17 million and $24.8 million cap numbers less impactful.
