⁂ Informational ⁂ Cap Mechanics: How the Post 6/1 release works

[Pape]

Was looking at OTC this morning... they had this article posted... It is a great read and explains in detail the Post-6/1 designation... There were a few things that I did not realize, like the designation can only be used twice by a team...

The Article ↪ Explaining the Post June 1 Designation | Over the Cap ↩

Here are the first few paragraphs... not going to link the whole article... strongly urge peeps to read it... full of good stuff

"Explaining the Post June 1 Designation
Posted on February 26, 2023 by Jason Fitzgerald

One of the more misunderstood rules of the NFL offseason is the application of and salary cap treatment of the post June 1 designation for a player who is being released. Hopefully this post can work as a primer of sorts for the offseason to help better discuss the options in front of a team.

When a player is cut from a team around the start of free agency the calculation is pretty straightforward. All future prorated money and salary guarantees accelerate onto the salary cap and become what is referred to as “dead money” for a team. In some cases the number can be very large, so large that it is prohibitive to release the player due to salary cap purposes.

To help fight back against basically having black hole roster spots created by the cap the NFL created a distinction in how a release is treated if made after June 1st in any given year. Starting on June 2nd any player who is released will have any future prorations land in the following season (the guarantees would still accelerate) rather than the current season. This can have a dramatic impact on the cap charge.

For example lets say a player has four years remaining on his contract and $5 million in prorated charges in each of those seasons. If he was cut prior to June 1 that would lead to $20 million in dead money this year. If cut after June 1 the player would instead have just $5 million in dead money in 2023 and now $15 million in 2024. While still the same number over two seasons the team has an out rather than being stuck due to the salary cap.

Still this requires a team to carry a player until June on the roster. During that time the player may earn an option bonus, roster bonus, workout bonus, etc…increasing his dead money and making the June 1 worthless. This is what lead to the NFL’s creation of the Post June 1 designation. What a team is allowed to do is declare a player a post June 1 cut and get the benefit of the June 1st salary cap treatment while also avoiding any offseason payments or guarantees from kicking in." ... to continue reading, hit the link

 

[Ross12]

Thanks for sharing. One thing I have seen on a lot of websites is folks saying that a player "should be traded with a June 1st designation" (such as Brandin Cooks) but as far as I know there is no such designation for a trade, only a release.

 

[Pape]

Thanks for sharing. One thing I have seen on a lot of websites is folks saying that a player "should be traded with a June 1st designation" (such as Brandin Cooks) but as far as I know there is no such designation for a trade, only a release.

The only thing teams can do is reach an agreement of understanding on a trade prior to the new season starting... but the team and the player have to know, until the actual contract is signed, its non binding... That's how Josh got out of Indianapolis

 

[captain stone]

If I'm reading this chart correctly, then Hunter Henry, Trent Brown, Dee Wise, Jalen Mills, Jake Bailey, Ty Montgomery and especially Devante Parker appear to be the more logical candidates for a post-June 1st release designation:

New England Patriots Salary Cap | Over the Cap

New England Patriots salary cap, contracts, bonus money, dead money, and cap savings for every player

overthecap.com

 

[Ross12]

If I'm reading this chart correctly, then Hunter Henry, Trent Brown, Dee Wise, Jalen Mills, Jake Bailey, Ty Montgomery and especially Devante Parker appear to be the more logical candidates for a post-June 1st release designation:

New England Patriots Salary Cap | Over the Cap

New England Patriots salary cap, contracts, bonus money, dead money, and cap savings for every player

overthecap.com

I don't believe the June 1 designation would affect several of those players, like Henry, Brown, Parker or Montgomery. Same amount of relief either way since this is the last year of their deals. Mills would only net a small increase of less than one million. The main guy who would be the logical fit for a June 1 release, should they want to release him, would be Jonnu Smith.

 

[captain stone]

I don't believe the June 1 designation would affect several of those players, like Henry, Brown, Parker or Montgomery. Same amount of relief either way since this is the last year of their deals. Mills would only net a small increase of less than one million. The main guy who would be the logical fit for a June 1 release, should they want to release him, would be Jonnu Smith.

Still no bargain either, even after June 1st...I think he lasts one more season, especially if BOB, who coached against him his first 3 seasons, feels he can still be of use here.