Falcons' Matt Ryan Reportedly Restructures Contract to Save Atlanta Cap Space

The Atlanta Falcons have made it closer to the salary cap after reportedly restructuring the contract of quarterback Matt Ryan, according to Zach Klein of television station WSB. 

Per Klein, Ryan's $23 million base salary for 2021 will drop to $2 million, with $21 million guaranteed over the next three years as bonuses. His cap hit for the upcoming season decreased from $40.9 million to $26.9 million. 

The team has come a long way since the start of its offseason moves, when it began with $30 million to shed before they were under the salary cap. The Falcons released three players—Ricardo Allen, James Carpenter and Allen Bailey—and then restructured the contract of left tackle Jake Matthews to ditch another $8 million, per Deen Worley of Falcons Wire. 

With the restructuring of Ryan's deal, the Falcons are finally in the safe spot regarding the cap, per Over the Cap. They are projected to have $177,204 to spend as of Tuesday afternoon. But there may still be other decisions to make if the team wants to make any significant moves in free agency. 

The decision to spread out the salary of the only quarterback on its roster shows that the team is going to remain committed to him for at least the next several years. Since the Falcons pick at No. 4 in the upcoming draft, they could take one of the top collegiate signal-callers if they don't find one in free agency.