Saints, Carr restructure contract to clear up cap space

New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr. Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Saints, Derek Carr restructure contract to clear up cap space

By Kerby Darius | Last updated 2/23/24

The New Orleans Saints have restructured QB Derek Carr’s contract in an attempt to get the team closer to complying with the league's salary cap, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. The move is expected to give the Saints a $23 million salary-cap relief.

Carr, who signed a four-year, $150 million contract with the Saints last March, was set to receive a $30 million base salary this season. The team opted to convert it into a signing bonus to move closer to cap compliance by the March 13 deadline.

However, this decision increases Carr's dead cap hit to $50 million in 2025, making it more challenging to part ways with him in the future, as per Spotrac on X.

The #Saints put a huge dent in their cap overage by converting $28.79M of Derek Carr's base salary into signing bonus.

The move freed up $23.02M of space in 2024, but it raised his 2025 dead cap hit up to $50.13M when including a $10M bonus that guarantees in 3 weeks.
— Spotrac (@spotrac) February 23, 2024

The 32-year-old quarterback finished the season with 3,878 yards, 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions, leading the Saints to a 9-8 record.

Despite finishing tied for first place in the division, they lost the playoff tiebreaker to their rival, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

This will not be the final move for the Saints, who remain $40 million over the salary cap. Expect more contract reconstructions and possible releases in the coming weeks.

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