Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Meghan L. Hall

7 NFL free agents who will most benefit from the salary cap raise, including Mike Evans

The NFL announced Friday that the 2024 salary cap number will increase by a whopping $30M million, and somewhere, free agents have started laughing as they make their way straight to the bank.

Per Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the salary cap number for 2024 is $255.4 million, up from $224.8 million in 2023. The new cap includes $74 million for each team to put towards player benefits like performance-based pay and retired players.

Teams like the New Orleans Saints, who are nearly always in cap hell, will be thrilled, but players who will likely command a larger salary just got a significant leg up. This helps them in negotiations and gives NFL teams one less excuse not to pay for top talent.

Here are seven free agents who will benefit from the 2024 NFL salary cap:

1
WR Mike Evans

(Matt Pendleton/USA TODAY Sports)
  • 2023 team: Buccaneers
  • Age: 31
  • 2023 avg. salary: $16,500,000
  • Market Value: 4 years — $95,343,536; avg salary — $23,835,884

2
EDGE Danielle Hunter

(Brad Rempel/USA TODAY Sports)
  • 2023 team: Vikings
  • Age: 30
  • 2023 avg. salary: $17,000,000
  • Market Value: 3 years — $60,114,213; avg salary — $20,038,071

3
S Eddie Jackson

(Scott Galvin/USA TODAY Sports)
  • 2023 team: Chicago Bears
  • Age: 30
  • 2023 avg. salary: $14,600,000

4
EDGE Chase Young

(Harry How/Getty Images)
  • 2023 team: San Francisco 49ers
  • Age: 25
  • 2023 avg. salary: $8,640,900
  • Market Value: 1 year — $13,010,600; avg salary — $13,010,600

5
CB Jeff Okudah

(Junfu Han/USA TODAY NETWORK)
  • 2023 team: Atlanta Falcons
  • Age: 25
  • 2023 avg. salary: $8,382,136
  • Market Value: 4 years — $59,058,112; avg salary — $14,764,528

6
DT Chris Jones

(Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
  • 2023 team: Kansas City Chiefs
  • Age: 30
  • 2023 avg. salary: $20,000,000
  • Market Value: 3 years — $85,450,884; avg salary — $28,483,628

7
WR Michael Pittman, Jr.

(Nathan Ray Seebeck/USA TODAY Sports)
  • 2023 team: Indianapolis Colts
  • Age: 27
  • 2023 avg. salary: $2,153,211
  • Market Value: 4 years — $90,867,748; avg salary — $22,716,937
Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.