The Cincinnati Bengals indeed freed up some cap space when working with running back Joe Mixon on a reworked deal.
According to the numbers at Over The Cap, the Bengals have roughly $19.2 million in free cap space as of this writing.
Mixon’s original 2023 cap hit checked in at nearly $13 million, whereas now it’s down to $8.6 million through details like shifting some of the money to bonuses.
This sort of move feels like the necessary housekeeping before a snowball effect of moves likely centered on extensions for Joe Burrow, Tee Higgins and possibly others.
While Mixon himself very much likely read the room on an extremely down running back market right now, this move that helps the team extend other pieces fits right within his goal of finishing what he started with the Bengals.