There are going to be many moves for the Green Bay Packers this offseason, as they work to get under the salary cap. The first of many moves came today, with the restructuring of the Kenny Clark contract. This move created nearly 11 million dollars in cap space by converting a portion of his salary into contract bonuses.
Not only was Clark arguably the most important Packer on the defense this past season, as shown numerous times on Lombardi Sweep, but he is now helping the Packers in a big way off of the field. What a guy.
Let’s take a look at the Kenny Clark contract, discuss what this means for the Packers going forward and see where the Green Bay Packers salary cap sits currently.
Kenny Clark Contract Gets Restructured
Currently, the Packers are far over the salary cap, so they must get back under. Anyone who truly understands the salary cap knows it is imaginary, as contracts can be manipulated to get under, no matter the situation.
Take the Kenny Clark contract, for example. The Packers took roughly $13M of his salary for next season and spread it out by making it guaranteed money and calling it a signing bonus. Not only that, but the Packers also created two “void years” on his contract where he will make roughly $2.7M each year.
If the Packers end up extending Clark down the road, these void years essentially don’t matter. Green Bay is simply kicking the can down the road to a point where the salary cap will be bigger and the Packers may not be in a position to contend anyways. Why doesn’t every time going “all-in” do this? That’s a great question since we have seen this is clearly the way to win Super Bowls right now.
Green Bay Packers Salary Cap
As stated above, converting about $13M of Clark’s salary for 2022 actually saves the Packers nearly $11M against the cap. However, they still have work to do. As of now, according to OverTheCap, the Packers are $42M over.
Clearly, there are more moves to be made. With the number of dumb emojis Za’Darius Smith is tweeting out, who knows what talks are going on with him. However, he should be the number one cap casualty for the Packers, as cutting him saves $15M. There are also plenty of edge rushers in this year’s draft to replace him.
What Does the Kenny Clark Contract Restructure Mean?
Well, it certainly points to Aaron Rodgers not retiring, right? If Rodgers were to retire, it obviously would mean tremendous things for the Green Bay Packers salary cap, as he is owed $46M next season. They wouldn’t need to do much with him off the books.
The Kenny Clark contract restructuring also says the Packers are looking to contend right now and worry about the future when it comes. Nobody in their right mind thinks the Packers can contend with Jordan Love leading the offense, so there should be optimism for Mr. Rodgers returning to his neighborhood.
There is an order all of this has to unfold. However, there is progress.
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