An interesting subplot going into the offseason is the new rule that allows teams to be able to carry over their excess cap space from one year to the next. It would be nice if the Atlanta Falcons could spend some money and upgrade their offensive and defensive lines or go after a marquee free agent tight or defensive back. Of course, you have to have money available in your payroll to do these types of things, which is something that the Falcons don't have.
Could the Falcons be forced into releasing some of their underachieving players?
Per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the Falcons have the second least amount of cap space available this offseason only behind the Pittsburgh Steelers. Currently Atlanta only has just under $750K available, and with the 2012 NFL Draft coming up in two months and free agents becoming available, the Falcons will have some tough personnel decisions to make this offseason.
Here is each team's remaining 2011 cap space, ranked from highest to lowest:
Jaguars: $31.66 million.
Broncos: $27.88 million.
Buccaneers: $25.05 million.
Chiefs: $24.01 million.
Seahawks: $21.27 million.
Bills: $19.29 million.
Bengals: $17.59 million.
Cowboys: $17.14 million.
49ers: $16.87 million.
Redskins: $13.6 million.
Eagles: $11.01 million.
Dolphins: $9.05 million.
Browns: $8.98 million.
Jets: $8.39 million.
Titans: $8.11 million.
Bears: $7.74 million.
Cardinals: $7.04 million.
Patriots: $6.66 million.
Ravens: $6.18 million.
Packers: $5.48 million.
Saints: $4.22 million.
Rams: $3.5 million.
Raiders: $3.23 million.
Panthers: $2.8 million.
Colts: $2.5 million.
Chargers: $2.1 million.
Vikings: $1.95 million.
Lions: $1.47 million.
Texans: $1.08 million.
Giants: $1.06 million.
Falcons: $747,000.
Steelers: $506,000.