The NFL sets their salary cap every year after the season and before the new league year. It had been steadily rising by $10-12 million since 2013. A new CBA was signed in 2012 after a lockout, and TV deals pumped a ton of money into the league’s coffers which allowed the pot to grow for players. That changed four years ago as the NFL looked to spread out some of the losses from the last three years. The cap dropped $15.7 million from 2020 to 2021, but it bounced back three years ago, and has been growing bigger every year since.
NFL salary cap in $277.5-281.5 million range; Washington Commanders have ~$82 million in cap space
