Salary Cap Question

[SeminoleRam]

If a player decides to end his career (Due to Injury, Personal Reasons, etc) how does that affect his team’s salary cap for the years remaining on his contract (Player signs a 5 year $50 million dollar contract but only plays 2 years before he leaves the NFL due to Injury or he is just tired of playing football, etc)? I am assuming that since this Player broke his contract even though it was for very good and valid reasons his team will no longer be responsible to pay the remaining money on his contract but what does that do to the team’s salary cap situation?

 

[fearsomefour]

I’m not the best with this stuff but the team is on the hook for the guaranteed money if the player is placed on the reserve/retired list and the guaranteed is guaranteed with injury.
I would assume most contracts have this clause.
That June 1st comes into play as well in terms of what money counts against the cap.
So, using your example, if the player retires because he no longer wants to play, that is very different than a medical retirement.
A medical would have to be diagnosed etc.
I remember reading when Eric Woods, the Bills OL, retired due to a game related neck injury he counted $4.8 M against the Bills cap the next following year.
So, I’m assuming here, voluntary retirement the team is off the hook (unless there is some prorated bonus or something that is contractually owed). Medical retirement they owe (and counts against the cap) for guaranteed monies.

 

[RamFan503]

This is a fairly decent article on the subject however, it really appears to depend on a lot of variables so likely no two contracts would affect the cap of a team in the same way.

The Cap Impact of Andrew Luck's Retirement | Over the Cap

The Cap Impact of Andrew Luck's Retirement | Over the Cap

overthecap.com

 

[SeminoleRam]

Fearsome, RamFan503, fav:

Thanks for the information! I always wondered with all the HUGE/LONG Term Contracts how it affects a Team’s Salary Cap when a Player leaves (Injury, Personal Reasons, etc) before his contract is fulfilled.