Having no fans in the stands was always going to hit the NFL pocketbooks hard in 2021. Another crummy side effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. This meant a substantial drop in the salary cap was anticipated. Enough to where several teams could be sitting far into the red before the offseason could even begin. The Chicago Bears stood to be among them.
With the initial floor set at $175 million, that would’ve put them upwards of $8 million over the cap. All of this with 30 pending free agents on the roster including star receiver Allen Robinson. Not to mention the obvious need to find a new quarterback. Far from ideal. Luckily it seems the winds of fortune may be starting to gust in their direction. Adam Schefter reported on Thursday that the NFL has decided to raise the floor by $5 million.
NFL informed teams today the salary cap this season will be a minimum of $180 million.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 18, 2021
Remember that this is just the minimum.
There is a growing belief that it could end up considerably higher than that. The NFL is in the midst of discussing new television deals with the top networks. Those contracts will garner billions of dollars. This combined with optimism about having fans back in 2021 is starting a groundswell about raising the cap a bit higher by borrowing from future years. Pro Football Focus cap expert has it on good authority about where the numbers could end up.
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Have now heard from a few different folks the 2021 NFL salary cap should ultimately end up in the $185-$188M range
TV deals probably still have to be finalized, but growing optimism it may only drop about ~$10M from 2020’s $198.2M number, not close to $20M as previously expected
— Brad Spielberger, Esq. (@SpielbergerBrad) February 18, 2021
If things play out that way, then the Bears stand to benefit. Rather than being over the cap by anywhere from $7-8 million, this new configuration would put them around $3-4 million. Far more manageable for GM Ryan Pace in order to get the payroll in some semblance of order before the offseason proper begins in March.
Chicago Bears know what their priorities are
It basically boils down to two key issues. The first is to find a quarterback. Will it be a veteran via trade or free agency or will they swing big in the draft again? Then they have to decide what to do about Robinson. The star receiver has dug his heels in deep on a long-term extension. This means the Bears will have to either raise their price to what he wants or use the franchise tag. The latter would cost them $18 million against the cap in 2021.
While Robinson is a great player, keeping him at that number would be challenging. Enough to where it may require sacrifices elsewhere on the roster. Most likely the defense with guys like Kyle Fuller, Akiem Hicks, and Buster Skrine being prime trade or cut candidates. Obviously, the Chicago Bears would prefer to avoid that. Especially if they want to make a run next season.
So even with this positive news, the team still faces a difficult next three months.
If Pace has any magic in his back pocket, he better use it. So far the Bears have been silent on the quarterback market. They were involved in both the Matthew Stafford and Carson Wentz trade derbies but never fully committed. Robinson continues his all-out media assault against them over his contract issue. Will they be able to navigate the minefield?
Plenty of people have doubts.