Here is the Chicago Bears’ salary cap position heading into training camp
The Chicago Bears enter training camp with an unfavorable salary cap situation, which has been the case all throughout the offseason.
Chicago traded former second-round wide receiver Anthony Miller to the Houston Texans, which freed up an additional $1.2 million in cap space and take on $500,000 in dead money. The Bears have just around $6 million in cap space after the trade, according to Spotrac.
The Bears placed the franchise tag on star wide receiver Allen Robinson earlier this offseason, and Robinson will play out the 2021 season on the tag after both sides failed to come to an agreement on a contract extension. Robinson has the highest cap hit of anyone on the roster at $17.9 million in 2021.
The next two highest cap hits are edge rushers Robert Quinn ($14.7 million) and Khalil Mack ($14.6 million). While Mack has been worth his massive pay day, Quinn is coming off a disappointing first season with Chicago, where he managed just two sacks after 11.5 sacks in 2019 with the Dallas Cowboys.
The Bears should be in a better position with the salary cap next season, as the cap ceiling has been set for $208.2 million for the 2022 season. That would be a $25.7 million increase from this season’s cap of $182.5 million. Although, we won’t know the final salary cap until next February. Chicago is set to have roughly $37 million in cap space for the 2022 season.
The Bears have several players due for contract extensions, starting with linebacker Roquan Smith, who has solidified himself as one of the league’s best linebackers. While Robinson is set to become a free agent in 2022, Chicago could lock him down if they pay him the money he believes he deserves, which is reported to be around $20 million per year.
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Bears' pre-training camp 90-man roster by jersey number
