Report: Saints restructure Carr, raising 2025 dead cap to over $50M

The New Orleans Saints restructured quarterback Derek Carr's contract to create approximately $23 million in salary cap relief, sources told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

The restructure was necessary as the Saints are projected to be roughly $42 million over the cap even after that relief is applied, according to Spotrac. The NFL set the 2024 cap Friday at $255.4 million. While this helps the team get closer to being cap compliant for 2024, the move increases Carr's 2025 dead cap hit to over $50 million.

Teams receive relief for the current season by converting a player's base salary into a bonus, but that bonus amount is then spread over the remaining years of the deal for cap purposes, increasing future cap hit numbers.

Carr's 2026 cap hit is scheduled to be over $61 million, and the team is facing $17.2 million in dead money for 2027, per Fox Sports' Greg Auman.

The 32-year-old battled through multiple injuries in 2023 but didn't miss a start. He finished the campaign with 3,878 passing yards, 25 touchdowns, and eight interceptions on 68.4% passing while the Saints finished 9-8.

New Orleans began its path to getting under the cap Thursday by restructuring center Erik McCoy's contract, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports. That move created just over $7 million in space.