Lonestar
05-16-2009, 04:38 PM
by Alex Marvez
Updated: May 15, 2009, 2:52 PM EST 47 comments The NFL's salary cap has risen yet again this offseason.
Teams were informed by the league Wednesday that the 2009 cap is jumping by almost $1 million to $128 million, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told FOXSports.com.
The added money was first reported earlier this morning on FOXSports.com.
The cap was originally slated to stand at $123 million entering the offseason — a projected $7 million increase over the 2008 salary cap under rules of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. But the number jumped to $127 million in late February just before the start of the free-agent signing period because teams failed to spend 59.5 percent of total revenues on player salaries and benefits in 2008.
The latest increase is $947,000. Aiello said the extra money, which resulted from accounting figures that were finalized in May, would normally be applied toward the following year's cap. That isn't possible for 2010 because this will be the final year of the cap unless the league reaches agreement with the NFL Players Association on a new CBA.
The NFL also is on track for a work stoppage in 2011 if a new deal between both sides can't be negotiated.
Under CBA rules, the cap equals roughly 60 percent of league revenue generated the previous year. The latest increase gives cap-strapped teams like Carolina more room in negotiating player contracts.
Aiello said the increase doesn't affect the minimum "floor" that teams must spend on player salaries under CBA rules. The 2009 number will remain at $107,748,000.
NFL owners will have closed-door discussions about the CBA next week at the league's annual spring meeting in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Recently hired NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith said earlier this month that he speaks three or four times per week with commissioner Roger Goodell, although Aiello said Friday negotiations had not begun on an agreement.
"Negotiations with the NFLPA on a new CBA have not commenced," Aiello said. "We have two more seasons to go on the current deal."
The salary cap began at $34.6 million when first instituted in 1994. The $12 million spike this year is the largest since 2006 when the cap ballooned from $85.5 million to $102 million following a CBA extension.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/9577476/NFL-salary-cap-jumps-nearly-$1-million-to-$128M
Updated: May 15, 2009, 2:52 PM EST 47 comments The NFL's salary cap has risen yet again this offseason.
Teams were informed by the league Wednesday that the 2009 cap is jumping by almost $1 million to $128 million, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told FOXSports.com.
The added money was first reported earlier this morning on FOXSports.com.
The cap was originally slated to stand at $123 million entering the offseason — a projected $7 million increase over the 2008 salary cap under rules of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. But the number jumped to $127 million in late February just before the start of the free-agent signing period because teams failed to spend 59.5 percent of total revenues on player salaries and benefits in 2008.
The latest increase is $947,000. Aiello said the extra money, which resulted from accounting figures that were finalized in May, would normally be applied toward the following year's cap. That isn't possible for 2010 because this will be the final year of the cap unless the league reaches agreement with the NFL Players Association on a new CBA.
The NFL also is on track for a work stoppage in 2011 if a new deal between both sides can't be negotiated.
Under CBA rules, the cap equals roughly 60 percent of league revenue generated the previous year. The latest increase gives cap-strapped teams like Carolina more room in negotiating player contracts.
Aiello said the increase doesn't affect the minimum "floor" that teams must spend on player salaries under CBA rules. The 2009 number will remain at $107,748,000.
NFL owners will have closed-door discussions about the CBA next week at the league's annual spring meeting in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Recently hired NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith said earlier this month that he speaks three or four times per week with commissioner Roger Goodell, although Aiello said Friday negotiations had not begun on an agreement.
"Negotiations with the NFLPA on a new CBA have not commenced," Aiello said. "We have two more seasons to go on the current deal."
The salary cap began at $34.6 million when first instituted in 1994. The $12 million spike this year is the largest since 2006 when the cap ballooned from $85.5 million to $102 million following a CBA extension.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/9577476/NFL-salary-cap-jumps-nearly-$1-million-to-$128M