We’ve reached yet another inflection point on the NFL’s cyclical calendar, sitting just about halfway between the start of the new league year last month and the 2026 NFL draft coming up at the end of April.
Both free agency and the draft give all 32 NFL teams a puncher's chance to add impact players ahead of the upcoming campaign, and the midpoint between the two gives us a natural pause to assess where each club stands in terms of salary cap space.
With that, here’s a look at each team’s remaining salary cap space, as well as the dead cap they’re set to carry heading into the 2026 season.
NFL Remaining Salary Cap Space, 2026 Season
The Titans, who currently lead the NFL with $63,203,086 in salary cap space heading into 2026, have had quite the offseason so far. They've hired Robert Saleh as their next head coach after firing Brian Callahan this past October; debuted a new uniform set; and made a bevy of signings, including DL John Frankin-Myers, WR Wan'Dale Robinson, and cornerbacks Alontae Taylor and Cor'Dale Flott.
Rounding out the top five in terms of cap space are the Commanders ($49.6 million), Chargers ($48.8 million), Cardinals ($40.8 million) and Jets ($39.6 million).
On the flipside, the Bears currently have the least amount of cap space in the NFL, sitting at a lowly $243,070. Their massive cap hits for 2026 include ED Montez Sweat, CB Jaylon Johnson, G Joe Thuney, DE Dayo Odeyingbo, G Jonah Jackson and DL Grady Jarrett, who are each on the books for more than $14 million. Chicago is the only team in the NFL with less than $1 million in salary cap space to work with.
Here’s a compete look at all 32 teams’s salary cap space, per OverTheCap.
| Team | Salary Cap Space |
|---|---|
| Tennessee Titans | $63,203,086 |
| Washington Commanders | $49,635,067 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | $48,679,074 |
| Arizona Cardinals | $40,835,523 |
| New York Jets | $39,551,357 |
| New England Patriots | $35,274,938 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | $34,830,735 |
| Seattle Seahawks | $32,947,183 |
| San Francisco 49ers | $30,539,247 |
| Baltimore Ravens | $29,539,010 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | $27,051,445 |
| Indianapolis Colts | $26,627,200 |
| Los Angeles Rams | $26,014,238 |
| Detroit Lions | $23,688,750 |
| Las Vegas Raiders | $23,472,186 |
| Green Bay Packers | $22,015,250 |
| Cleveland Browns | $21,069,505 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | $20,368,396 |
| Denver Broncos | $18,782,088 |
| Houston Texans | $15,356,292 |
| Dallas Cowboys | $14,424,454 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | $14,314,627 |
| Atlanta Falcons | $14,013,085 |
| New Orleans Saints | $13,897,399 |
| Buffalo Bills | $12,291,157 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | $6,717,066 |
| New York Giants | $6,490,862 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | $5,989,907 |
| Minnesota Vikings | $4,826,234 |
| Carolina Panthers | $2,210,496 |
| Miami Dolphins | $1,933,064 |
| Chicago Bears | $243,070 |
NFL Dead Cap Hits, 2026 Season
In conjunction with the NFL’s salary cap, the league also has what are called “dead money” cap hits. In its simplest terms, dead money is salary cap space occupied by a player who is no longer on a team’s active roster due to a trade, a cut or a retirement.
The Dolphins carry the league’s highest dead cap hit in 2026 by far with a whopping $179.2 million price tag. This includes the money tied into the contracts of QB Tua Tagovailoa, WRs Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, DBs Jalen Ramsey and Minkah Fitzpatrick, and LB Bradley Chubb. Miami is carrying over $67 million more in dead money than the next closest team.
MORE: Dolphins Taking on Record Dead Money After Jaylen Waddle Trade
That club would be the Saints, who carry a dead cap charge of $112.1 million in 2026 thanks to the contracts of QB Derek Carr, CB Marshon Lattimore, and defenders Cameron Jordan and Demario Davis, among others. Rounding out the top five are the Jets ($111.2 million), Browns ($91.6 million) and Cardinals ($73.3 million).
The team with the lowest hit heading into this season, meanwhile, is the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks, who carry with them a mere $483,723 in dead money.
Here’s a full look at all 32 NFL teams’s dead cap hits in 2026.
| Team | Dead Cap Hit |
|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | $179,204,257 |
| New Orleans Saints | $112,108,154 |
| New York Jets | $111,246,438 |
| Cleveland Browns | $91,602,938 |
| Arizona Cardinals | $73,320,820 |
| Houston Texans | $66,366,709 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | $53,340,647 |
| Las Vegas Raiders | $52,012,266 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | $51,617,968 |
| Buffalo Bills | $46,164,050 |
| Green Bay Packers | $43,199,303 |
| Dallas Cowboys | $41,550,057 |
| Atlanta Falcons | $38,844,465 |
| New England Patriots | $38,227,882 |
| San Francisco 49ers | $36,247,741 |
| Minnesota Vikings | $35,146,407 |
| Detroit Lions | $26,468,791 |
| Tennessee Titans | $25,184,566 |
| Carolina Panthers | $22,140,178 |
| Washington Commanders | $20,692,736 |
| Chicago Bears | $19,895,493 |
| Baltimore Ravens | $18,198,715 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | $13,329,591 |
| New York Giants | $12,618,472 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | $12,221,838 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | $10,365,869 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | $9,773,977 |
| Indianapolis Colts | $9,593,644 |
| Los Angeles Rams | $8,835,821 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | $5,548,177 |
| Denver Broncos | $3,385,588 |
| Seattle Seahawks | $483,723 |
More NFL from Sports Illustrated
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- Updated List of Longest Playoff Droughts in Sports As Sabres Finally Clinch Postseason
- Highest-Paid Edge Rushers in the NFL: Full Breakdown
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Salary Cap Check: Where All 32 NFL Teams Stand Pre-Draft, Post-Free Agency.
