The 49ers now have the most salary cap space in the NFL heading into the 2023 season thanks to another contract restructure.
ESPN’s Field Yates on Saturday reported the 49ers restructured defensive lineman Arik Armstead’s deal to give them an additional $11.78 million in cap space for this year.
Buy 49ers TicketsThe Armstead restructure combined with the recent restructures of left tackle Trent Williams and tight end George Kittle have turned the 49ers from a team battling to stay under the cap, to a team sitting with over $41 million in room for this season — by far the most in the league.
Typically San Francisco will want a little space for some potential in-season maneuvers, but $41.5 million goes well beyond the needs for in-house bookkeeping. They could be aiming to roll most of that number over to the 2024 season. They might also have their eye on an in-season trade that’ll require a lot of salary cap wiggle room.
Armstead’s deal was one it looked like the 49ers might be able to get off of for relatively cheap next offseason if they needed cap space. Instead they pushed some of his cap hits into the future, which indicates he’ll be around for at least next season.
