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Packers rework David Bakhtiari's contract to lessen cap pressure

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated 2/27/22

The Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints were among the teams projected to be well above the salary cap for 2022, and both teams have been making moves to ameliorate their situations.

On Saturday, we learned that the Packers reworked David Bakhtiari’s contract to ease their salary cap situation. They were able to clear just over $9 million in cap space by converting Bakhtiari’s roster bonus and part of his base salary to a signing bonus.

The #Packers converted $2M of LT David Bakhtiari’s base salary & his $9.5M roster bonus into signing bonus, clearing $9.16M of cap space.

GB has now opened up over $23M of cap via restructures, but still sit a projected $28M over. https://t.co/gtr9qy6E9Y

— Spotrac (@spotrac) February 26, 2022

The good news for Green Bay is that they have cleared $23 million in cap space. The bad news is they are still projected to be $28 million over the cap.

How the Packers manage their cap situation will likely play a role in Aaron Rodgers’ decision. The two-time reigning NFL MVP likely wants to ensure that Green Bay’s roster won’t be handicapped for next season.

Just like Green Bay, the Saints made a move to help their cap situation. They restructured the contract for Michael Thomas and Ryan Ramczyk, freeing up just over $26 million in cap space.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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