Geoff Hobson
Afterspending atthe top of the NFL offseason with anearly $300 millionbonanza, reports surfaced Tuesday that the Bengals haverestructured QBJoe Burrowscontract, bonusing aportionof his salary to createsomecap space.
According to overthecap.com, the Bengals were near the bottom of the league in cap room beforethis transaction.The moveappears to bea bid to give the Bengals salary cap flexibility for the upcoming season because the blockbusterDexter Lawrence IItrade came so late in free agency when they agreed to a three-year, $70 million deal for the Giants' three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle.
The Lawrence deal is the centerpiece of the massive defensive overhaul that also included a three-year, $40.25 million deal forBryan Cook, free agency's top-rated safety, and a three-year, $60 million strike for Super Bowl pass rusherBoye Mafe. Because the trade for Lawrence came just a few days before the draft on April 18, the big deals were already in place, sothis became the best option for the team to manage the salary cap this year.
It appears Burrow's contract restructuregets them back to theNFLaverage in cap room as they navigate the rest of the season. The Bengals haveindicatedthey want to be strategic with how they manage the salarycapso theydon'thave to restructure contracts everyyear.
"Cap dollars have to be counted, so if we can accomplish what we want to accomplish without pushing things into future problems, we'll do that," said Bengals director of player personnelDuke Tobin during the offseason."If we need that, we'll consider that as well.We'reopen to doing anything we need to do to improve our team."
Burrow signed the richest deal in NFL history at the time on a five-year, $275 million extension on the eve of the 2023 season.Meanwhile, the Bengals locked up his favorite targets before this last season when they gave All-Pro wide receiverJaMarr Chasethe richest non-quarterback deal ever at the time and another contract that gives Pro BowlerTee Higginsthe sixth biggest cap hit among NFL receivers this season.
