The Tennessee Titans will likely make some cuts this offseason to create more cap space to work with, but restructuring contracts is another way for general manager Jon Robinson to give himself more wiggle room.
Tennessee has about $50 million in cap space for this offseason, but with a lot of moves to make in free agency, that isn’t as much as it seems.
Contracts can be restructured in a few ways:
- A player can simply take a pay cut.
- A player on a long-term deal can have their salary from the upcoming season converted into signing bonus money that is spread out to the later years of the contract, creating more cap space in the short term but bigger cap hits in the future.
With the NFL’s salary cap projected to see a significant increase in 2021 and beyond, a team like the Titans can better absorb a restructure with a player that creates a bigger cap hit down the road.
Here are some players who could fit into either of those restructure categories.
Delanie Walker | TE
There’s no two ways about it: Delanie Walker is one of the top candidates to be cut this offseason.
The veteran tight end will be 36 when next season starts and after he saw two straight seasons end early due to injury, Tennessee might be willing to move on — and that’s especially true after the emergence of Jonnu Smith, and with Anthony Firkser already having been re-signed.
If the Titans want to hold onto Walker, they could approach him about taking a pay cut for 2020. Walker is set to make $8 million next season, so it would take a significant decrease in salary for him to remain in Nashville.
Chances are Walker will get cut instead, though.
Cameron Wake | EDGE
Like Walker, Cameron Wake is a candidate to get cut this offseason. He dealt with injuries in 2019 and played in just nine games, totaling 2.5 sacks (all in Week 1 against the Cleveland Browns).
Wake is set to make $8.2 million next season, which is a lot of money to pay for a 38-year-old pass-rusher who can’t play a full complement of snaps.
Wake might also get pushed down the depth chart if the Titans sign a pass-rusher and/or add one in the 2020 NFL Draft.
At the very least, this all screams “pay cut!”
Malcolm Butler | CB
With the Titans facing the prospect of losing Logan Ryan in free agency, the team would be wise to hold on to Malcolm Butler in 2020 if it doesn’t want to completely rebuild the secondary.
The only problem with that is Butler is set to make $13.3 million next season and north of $14 million in the final two years of his deal. It’s hard to justify paying that much for a good, but not great, corner.
The approach the Titans should take with Butler is simple: ask him to take a pay cut.
Butler is already 30 years old and trying to push some of his money off to later years could end up making already daunting cap hits in 2021 and 2022 look even worse.
If Butler doesn’t take a pay cut and remains with the team, he’d be as close to a lock to be cut as you can get in 2021.
Taylor Lewan | LT
The Titans made the right decision in locking Taylor Lewan up with a lucrative, long-term deal in 2018, as he’s become one of the premier left tackle in the sport during his career.
But now it’s time for Lewan, who will make $18.2 million in 2020, to return the favor.
Lewan will be just 29 when the new season starts, so the risk of converting some of his 2020 salary into signing bonus money and creating bigger cap hits down the road wouldn’t be too risky of a proposition.
Ryan Succop | K
Ryan Succop is on the list of Titans who might get cut after what was easily his worst season as a pro, but perhaps the team would be willing to keep him around if he takes less money.
Succop’s $4.1 million 2020 salary doesn’t leave a lot of room for adjustment, but he does carry a dead cap number of $2.1 million if the Titans decide to cut him.
If the Titans can get Succop to take close to or the same amount as his dead cap number, it would make sense to bring him back and have him compete with Greg Joseph for the starting job.
This way, Tennessee can hedge its bet in trying to find the best kicker to help pull the field goal unit out of its league-worst ranking from a season ago.
Jurrell Casey | DL
A staple of the Titans’ defense for years now, Jurrell Casey might be a restructure candidate in 2020. While he is still valuable, I’m not sure he’s exactly worth the salary he’s set to make.
Casey will get paid $13.3 and $13.8 million over the final two years of his deal, respectively, but he also carries dead cap hits of $3.2 and $1.6 million for 2020 and 2021. Those minimal dead cap hits could make cutting Casey a realistic option for the Titans, either this year or next.
The veteran will also be 31 in December and he likely wouldn’t get the same amount on the open market that he’s being paid now. As a result, Casey might be open to taking less.
