The Denver Broncos have finalized their 53-man roster, injured reserve decisions, and practice squad. Thus, we now have a good idea of where things stand with the Broncos salary cap position for 2023.
As of September 1, Over The Cap listed the Broncos as having nearly $10.7 million in cap space. However, that figure did not include the cap hit for Mike Purcell, who the Broncos cut as a procedural move, then re-signed after putting other players on IR with designation to return.
Purcell was set to make $2.25M for 2023 in a renegotiated contract. That figure would lower the Broncos' cap space to about $8.4M.
That still gives the Broncos enough wiggle room to get through the 2023 season. During the course of the season, the Broncos will likely make changes to the roster, which impact the cap space throughout the season.
For example, when the Broncos decide to bring K'Waun Williams off injured reserve, they will likely send a younger player to waivers with the intent of adding that player to the practice squad. That, in turn, means the younger player gets a lower salary.
One thing to keep in mind is that all players with at least four accrued seasons will have their base salaries fully guaranteed as of Week 1. Those with less than four accrued seasons don't see their salaries guaranteed unless they were guaranteed upon signing.
However, should the Broncos trade a player, they will gain cap space because the acquiring team takes the remainder of the base salary. Also, most players have offset clauses in their contracts, which means if a player with guaranteed money is cut, then signs elsewhere, there will be some cap savings based on what the player receives from his new team.
All of this is to say that it will be some time before we know how much cap space the Broncos will carry over for 2024. As things stand, the Broncos are projected to be $13M above the cap in 2024, based on a cap estimate of $256M, but the projection doesn't include 2023 carryover.
As always, fans shouldn't fret too much about the cap situation at this point. The Broncos have enough to get by for 2023, and decisions about 2024 will come after the 2023 season.
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