On Wednesday, the NFL shared that the 2025 salary cap will increase by at least $22 million for the upcoming season, giving teams at least $277.5 to spend on their roster.
That’s at least an eight percent increase for the 2025 season over last year’s figure, giving teams more flexibility to sign players during the offseason.
It’s also a big help to the Cleveland Browns, a team that is currently over the projected salary cap due in large part to restructuring Deshaun Watson’s contract multiple times since signing him to a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed deal in 2022.
Cleveland will need to shed salaries before the upcoming season to meet the salary cap, potentially leaving several of the team’s current free agents without a new deal.
The Browns may have to dig deeper than parting ways with existing free agents to meet their spending restrictions, especially as the organization is set to add several rookies to their roster from the 2025 NFL Draft.
One player that analyst Matt Okada suggested as a cut candidate for the Browns is defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson.
“They might have to look at Dalvin Tomlinson, who started 16 games in 2024 and was pretty solid from a production standpoint, as a designated post-June 1 cut, which would result in $6.4 million in cap savings. It’s a small start to a major project,” Okada said.
Okada pegged the Browns as being $31 million over the salary cap, a figure that includes the projected increase for next season.
The analyst suggested the “most lucrative options” for cut candidates are offensive linemen, but Okada added the Browns are unlikely to move on from any of those individuals.
