NFL Reportedly Sets 2026 Salary Cap Range, Updated Projections for All Teams Ahead of Free Agency

NFL teams are reportedly projected to gain at least $22 million in cap space ahead of the 2026 season.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Friday that the NFL has informed clubs that the 2026 salary cap is projected to be in the range from $301.2 million to $305.7 million.

Teams operated last season under a $279.2 million salary cap.

If the cap ultimately lands around $304 million, the Titans are projected to lead the NFL with $100 million in cap space, per Spotrac.

The Las Vegas Raiders, New York Jets, Los Angeles Chargers, Seattle Seahawks, Washington Commanders, Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals are also all projected to have at least $55 million in space under a $304 million cap, according to Spotrac.

The NFL's salary cap has steadily risen each season since 2021. This latest jump will mark an increase of almost $100 million from 2022, when the cap was $208.2 million, per Spotrac.

The news comes as teams prepare for the free agency period to open on March 11.

Some of the teams with the most cap space might be about to undergo contract negotiations with key pending free agents including Jets running back Breece Hall, Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson and Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III.

The bump could also impact how much dead salary teams are willing to take on in order to move on from restrictive contracts this season. The Miami Dolphins and Arizona Cardinals have been tied to potentially taking on dead money in order to part ways this offseason with quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Kyler Murray, respectively.

The increase will also change how much financial maneuvering cap-exceeding teams like the Kansas City Chiefs, New Orleans Saints, Minnesota Vikings and Dallas Cowboys need to do in order to get under the cap before the new league year starts on March 11.

The NFL has almost doubled its cap over the span of a decade since limiting teams at $155.27 million in spending in 2016. The only decrease since the introduction of the cap came in 2021 following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The salary cap jumped by $25.7 million the following season and has continued rising since.

It will now exceed $300 million for the first time after the league broke fiscal records with a lucrative 2024 campaign.

Sports Business Journal's Ben Fischer reported last April that the NFL had informed teams the league pulled in more than $23 billion in revenue during the last fiscal year.

That took NFL commissioner Roger Goodell one step closer to what he said in 2010 was his goal of drawing in $25 billion in annual revenue by 2027.

Each team received $416 million of that 2024 revenue thanks media, sponsorship and licensing revenue distribution, according to Fischer. That marked a $34 million jump over the year prior, during which teams received $382 million in revenue distribution, Fischer reported.

Teams may be hoping for another bump in revenue distribution for 2025 after the NFL saw an increase in viewership numbers during the regular season.

Viewership tracker Nielsen changed its data collection strategy last fall to take more into account out-of-home viewing at locations like bars and restaurants. Those new numbers showed the NFL averaging 18.7 million viewers per regular-season game, the league's second-best mark ever and highest since 1989.