For the past few years, the New Orleans Saints have entered the offseason over the salary cap. And every year, Mickey Loomis and Khai Harley find a way to get out of that tricky situation.
Coming into this weekend, New Orleans was roughly $76 million over the cap for the 2022 season. On Saturday morning, Loomis and Harley found a way to cut a little over $26 million from that deficit without releasing a player.
According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the Saints converted $14.565 million of Michael Thomas’ compensation and $18.206 million of Ryan Ramczyk’s compensation into signing bonuses for the 2022 season. Those moves created $26.217 million in cap space.
The Saints’ willingness to restructure Thomas’ contract is a strong sign that he’ll be back for the 2022 season.
Source: the Saints’ cap moves are underway, as they’ve converted $14.565M of Michael Thomas’ compensation for 2022 and $18,206,608 of OT Ryan Ramczyk’s compensation for 2022 into signing bonuses, creating $26.217M in cap space.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) February 26, 2022
Unsurprisingly, NFL fans are impressed with the way the Saints’ front office constantly work the salary cap.
“The best in the business,” one fan tweeted.
The best In the business https://t.co/BIUs8dFptk
— To|/|Sic T⭕️p5 ⚜️ 🌉 (@TomSic707) February 26, 2022
“Mickey can scheme the scam better than anyone,” another fan wrote.
Mickey can scheme the scam better than anyone https://t.co/GFL3UY37yk
— j (@jengro1417) February 26, 2022
The Saints have a lot more work to do, but it’s worth noting they can clear more than $100 million in cap space this season without cutting anyone. However, that would put them on the hook for larger cap hits next year.
Expect the Saints to make a handful of moves over the next two weeks.
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