The Arizona Cardinals are likely going to trade wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins this offseason, as they were actively shopping him to other teams at the NFL combine last week. It will be a move to create salary cap space but it will not be as much as many would hope.
Hopkins is due more than $19 million in salary in 2023 and currently is slated to count more than $30 million against the 2023 salary cap.
Trading him creates cap space but it will also leave a large chunk of dead money as well.
Here are the numbers:
Trading Hopkins would save the Cardinals $19.45 million of actual cash, being the amount he will earn in 2023, but that is not the amount that will come off the cap.
They will save $8.15 million in cap space but incut $22.6 million in dead cap charges for previous signing bonuses and restructure bonuses, which prorate against the cap.
When a contract comes off the books, any future prorations are accelerated to the current year.
The proration for his bonuses already paid are $11.3 million in 2023 and 2024.
But moving Hopkins now would give the Cardinals more than $26 million in cap relief in 2024.
Trading him will help and hurt this year. If they can net a solid pick or picks for him, it could be worth it.
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