Salary Cap Breakdown: A Look at the NFC North

Though the 2012 salary cap hasn't yet been set by the league, it's safe to assume that it will be somewhere in the $121 million to $125 million range with teams eligible to borrow up to $2 million from next year's cap.

Teams can also carry over remaining cap space from last season into this one if they choose to, giving them extra wiggle room to re-sign their own free agents or grabbing veteran free agents from the open market.

With this in mind, let's take a look at the salary cap situation for all four teams in the NFC North. Also note that none of these four teams have significant carry-over cash from last season. These numbers are estimations provided by Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears' projected 2012 spending is around $102 million, leaving them with around $15 million in cap space after spending up to around $7 million on contracts for the eight rookies they're projected to add in the NFL draft.

Clearly, some of that money should be earmarked to lock running back Matt Forte down to a long-term deal. However, the team should also try to spend some of it on acquiring a free-agent wide receiver.

The Bears have cap space to spare, to be sure, and they will likely find themselves with a bit more cash once they start parting ways with overpriced, under-performing veterans.

But they'll have to spend wisely—there could be a bit of ill will brewing if they choose to bring in a veteran wideout and offer him a contract while giving their most valuable player, Forte, the franchise tag.

Detroit Lions

At nearly $123 million in tied-up moneys, the Lions entered the month perilously close to the projected 2012 cap. They'll need to restructure a number of veteran contracts—most notably, that of wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who is owed over $17 million in 2012 in a combination of salary and bonuses.

The Lions have a number of free agents they'd like to retain, mainly on defense, and most of their excess money on top of what they're saving for rookie contracts will likely go to keeping their own in Detroit rather than picking up veterans from the open market.

Keep a close eye on the restructuring efforts of the team in the weeks leading up to March 13's free agency kickoff. There's likely to be a flurry of activity starting quite soon.

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers have a $118 million financial obligation on the books for 2012 and should successfully restructure a few contracts in the coming weeks to have a bit more breathing room and craft new deals for tight end Jermichael Finley and center Scott Wells.

The Packers could free up cap room by reworking the contract of or parting ways with veteran wide receiver Donald Driver, releasing tackle Chad Clifton (owed $5 million in 2012) and restructuring the contracts of cornerback Charles Woodson ($12 million) and linebacker A.J. Hawk ($6.5 million).

Again, like the Lions, don't look for the Packers to go to free-agent veterans to boost their depth. Instead, they'll be relying heavily to shore up their deficiencies, namely on defense.

Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are pushing up against the projected $124 million cap as well, with about $8 million left after paying their current contracts as they presently stand.

The Vikings also have 17 unrestricted free agents on their roster, and it stands to reason that they'd like to retain more than a few of them. Restructuring veterans will be a high priority for the team, as they need to not only build depth via the draft but also snag a few free agents off of the market, especially a wide receiver.

Few teams in the NFL are in as a troubled situation as the Vikings are this year. The salary cap situation is just one of their many woes, but if they can get it under control enough to retain valuable players, add a free agent or two and have enough left over for their rookies, that's one problem solved.

Luckily this part of the ordeal will be over in a month or so.

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