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The Arizona Cardinals will get some cap relief with the release of quarterback Kyler Murray. However, it will not come for a while. As expected, he was designated as a post-June 1 release, which means the cap charge for his contract will be spread over this season and next season.
His contract was scheduled to count $52.7 million against the salary cap in 2026. A straight release would have created about $54.7 million in dead money against the salary cap, meaning their cap space would have been reduced by $2 million to let him go.
Dead money is the charge against the salary for any previously paid bonuses that were prorated against the cap and any salary guarantees remaining to be paid.
Teams can't avoid the cap. Money they pay players or have guaranteed to players will either count on the current season or later. Salaries, roster bonuses and workout bonuses count against the current year's cap. Signing bonuses, option bonuses and restructure bonuses prorate over the life of the contract, up to five years.
The Cardinals will pay Murray $36.8 million in guaranteed money in 2026 with offsets, meaning the salary a new team pays him will be reduced from the total. He is likely to sign a veteran-minimum deal with a new deal, worth less than $1.3 million, so the Cardinals will pay him about $35.5 million to no longer be on the team.
With a post-June 1 designation, the $52.7 million cap hit remains in force until June 2. After that, the Cardinals will incur dead money charges of $47.5 million, giving the Cardinals about $5 million in cap savings in 2026. They will carry the remaining $7.2 million in dead money in 2027.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: The Cardinals released Kyler Murray with a post-June 1 designation
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His contract was scheduled to count $52.7 million against the salary cap in 2026. A straight release would have created about $54.7 million in dead money against the salary cap, meaning their cap space would have been reduced by $2 million to let him go.
What is dead money?
Dead money is the charge against the salary for any previously paid bonuses that were prorated against the cap and any salary guarantees remaining to be paid.
Teams can't avoid the cap. Money they pay players or have guaranteed to players will either count on the current season or later. Salaries, roster bonuses and workout bonuses count against the current year's cap. Signing bonuses, option bonuses and restructure bonuses prorate over the life of the contract, up to five years.
Salary cap implications for the Cardinals
The Cardinals will pay Murray $36.8 million in guaranteed money in 2026 with offsets, meaning the salary a new team pays him will be reduced from the total. He is likely to sign a veteran-minimum deal with a new deal, worth less than $1.3 million, so the Cardinals will pay him about $35.5 million to no longer be on the team.
With a post-June 1 designation, the $52.7 million cap hit remains in force until June 2. After that, the Cardinals will incur dead money charges of $47.5 million, giving the Cardinals about $5 million in cap savings in 2026. They will carry the remaining $7.2 million in dead money in 2027.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: The Cardinals released Kyler Murray with a post-June 1 designation
Continue reading...
