These 4 players are causing the biggest Chicago Bears salary cap hits in 2023
As the Chicago Bears stand right now, they have $35M in cap space. The good news is that they can roll this space over if it comes to it. Also, they have the ability to extend a lot of their own players as well as find options in free agency closer to free agency.
As the team stands right now, they have four players who make up over 5% of the total salary cap, they are the following players.
1. DJ Moore $20.2M
Talk about a splash move for the offseason. D.J. Moore was just a piece in the trade down from one to nine and he now is the highest cap hit for the Chicago Bears. The good news? His cap hit lowers for the next two seasons, and his deal becomes a bargain after that. They have so much cap space they are not even feeling it this year, so this deal is about to become an even bigger bargain.
2. Eddie Jackson $17.1M
This is one of the deals that Ryan Pace handed out. The Chicago Bears may not love paying Eddie Jackson this much, but at the same time, they have so much cap space that it is not a big deal, either. When you consider his veteran impact on the roster you can justify the hit.
An interesting debate about Eddie Jackson comes next season. The team will still have space, but his hit goes up to $18M, and his dead money if released is just $5.6M. Jackson will have to perform, or the Bears could save $12M by moving on.
3. Tremaine Edmunds $14.7M
First, we have a Ryan Poles splash, then a Ryan Pace decision, and now back to Poles. Edmunds was the big splash, and while some teams will push the first-year cap hit of a big deal back, the Bears did that but ate a good bit this year as well. Next year Edmunds will have a cap hit of $22.2, and then it will be $17.4 for the final two years of his deal.
Next. 5 Bears unlikely to be back in 2024. dark
4. Cody Whitehair $14.1M
Now, we are back to a Ryan Pace decision for the last big cap hit the Bears have this season. The team could have moved on from Whitehair but moved him from guard to center instead. Again, this cap hit does not hurt them, but next year it will be interesting. They could save nearly $10M next year, so his play this year will determine a lot.