How Darius Slay release affects future Eagles deals including Jalen Hurts
Most of us, a week ago, probably didn’t expect to hear the news that Darius Slay would be cut by the Philadelphia Eagles ahead of the new league year, but that’s how quickly things change in the NFL. Less than 24 hours after the announcement of James Bradberry’s three-year extension, Big Play Slay is, indeed, rumored to be looking for a new home though there’s been no official word of his release.
The new league year begins at 4 p.m. EST on Wednesday, March 15th. James Bradberry‘s deal and the other deals we’ve read the terms of between the start of legal tampering and the present tense can all be signed and made official at that time.
Ahead of that, let’s focus on what most of you care most about: how Slay’s expected release affects the Eagles’ current cap standing and how they can move forward with the necessary cap space.
Here’s how Darius Slay’s release affects the Eagles’ current cap standing as well as future deals, a possible Jalen Hurts extension for instance.
Unless a team makes some unexpected move soon, Darius Slay’s expected release, if it occurs, comes with a June 1st designation. That means Philadelphia will save $17 million against the cap. Had they traded him or cut him, they would have incurred a $22 million cap hit and would have saved only $3 million.
Related Story. Best options for replacing Darius Slay. light
That means the good news is they’ll save cap space if the release becomes finalized. The bad news is they won’t receive that cap space until June 1st. So, while this move won’t benefit them between now and then, they will reap benefits later.
In other words, they don’t have the cash they’ll save by releasing him immediately, so it won’t help with the signing of say a C.J. Gardner-Johnson. In the long run, however, after June 1st, it will benefit them then. In other words, they could use the money on a future deal like the expected extension that Jalen Hurts will eventually be offered.
At the time of this story’s release, Spotrac reports Philadelphia currently owns $8.5 million in cap space. That number will change between now and 4 p.m.
