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The NFL makes a lot of money.
As such, that money needs to go somewhere other than enriching the already preposterously rich team owners.
In 2024, that means a large spike to the league’s salary cap after a third-straight year of revenue growth following the pandemic.
David Rumsey of Front Office Sports reports that the league’s salary cap is project to rise over $240 million ahead of the 2024 season. That’s a more than $15 million jump from the $224.8 million cap set for 2023.
It also represents a more than $50 million jump from the cap just five years prior, which sat at $188.2 million.
Rumsey reports that “the league is believed to have brought in close to $20 billion in revenue — inching the NFL’s 32 owners closer to commissioner Roger Goodell’s long-stated goal of $25 billion in annual revenue.”
NFL Likely To Release 2024 Salary Cap Number In Coming Months
Similarly, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com state that an official cap number should be released in the coming months.
“The NFL Management Council informed clubs this past week that it won’t provide a projection for the 2024 salary cap at the Winter League Meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the cap is unlikely to be set until after New Year’s Day, according to sources,” their report states. “But people familiar with the matter say surging revenue and diminishing aftershocks of the 2020 pandemic are on track to yield significant cap growth over the next several years, with a 2024 cap likely to land north of $240 million and additional revenue rolling into future caps.”
For comparison’s sake, the NHL salary cap is projected to be $87.7. The 2024 NBA salary cap is projected at $142. And the New York Mets have the highest projected MLB pay roll at $223.9 million.
Sure, NFL teams have the largest roster size by far. But that means most teams are likely to shell out more than the highest-spending MLB team in 2024.