There were a few reasons to move on from veteran QB Alex Smith if you are a fan of the Washington Football team, such as the desire to get a younger quarterback in the mix, or someone who is more mobile and less prone to injury setbacks.
However, there may have been no bigger reason than his looming contract hit in 2021. The QB was set to make over $24 million, and there was still no guarantee that he would be the 16-game starter that Washington was hoping for.
So after his release on Monday, where does that leave the WFT as far as cap-space goes?
Washington saves $13.6 million on the salary cap by releasing Alex Smith. The team has, as of now, about $52 million in cap space heading into free agency, per Over the Cap, which projects a $180.5 million cap. This gives WSH 4th-most room behind only JAX, NYJ, NE.
— Sam Fortier (@Sam4TR) March 1, 2021
Sitting pretty, to be completely honest. Washington doesn’t get all $24 million back from Smith’s contract, as some of it goes to a dead-cap hit, but with the release, they freed up $13.6 million with which they can address other needs now. This gives them the 4th most cap-space in the NFL this offseason which is significant for one major reason.
A lot of NFL teams are going to be constricted by the salary cap this season because of COVID-19, and we are projected that many teams are going to have to release some veteran players as cap casualties. If you’re someone like Washington who has money to spend and holes to fill, it’s like being one of the few players left at a poker table that has money, where they can lean on everyone else and bully the market to get the players that they want.
We won’t know much more about who Washington has its eyes on until Free Agency starts on March 17th, but it’s clear that the WFT is going to be aggressive in its acquisitions, and they will have the means to make a lot of things work as well.
