One of the first players to reach an agreement with a new team in free agency’s legal tampering window on Monday was defensive tackle David Onyemata, who is leaving the New Orleans Saints for a new deal with the Atlanta Falcons paying him nearly $12 million per year. That would’ve been difficult for the Saints to match, so it isn’t too surprising that they let him move on without a fight.
What’s going to be challenging is the dead money left behind. Onyemata’s departure will cause $10,192,555 to accelerate onto this year’s salary cap as dead money left over from past restructures with his old contract, meaning the Saints are losing those resources that could be going to other players. Still, this is a scenario they prepared for. Now the contingency plan is going to be tested.
