Yesterday, Tom Curran of CSN New England pointed out that a trio of Patriots count for more than $40 million of the team’s 2013 salary cap. The Pats’ new AFC nemesis has a similar problem.
According to Albert Breer of NFL Network, 10 Ravens count for more than $69 million under the cap.
As we pointed out earlier this week, linebacker Terrell Suggs has a cap number of $13.02 million. The others nine are: defensive lineman Haloti Ngata ($11,500,000); receiver Anquan Boldin ($7,531,250); offensive lineman Marshal Yanda ($7,450,000); running back Ray Rice ($5,750,000); cornerback Lardarius Webb ($5,385,000); offensive tackle Michael Oher ($4,955,000); receiver Jacoby Jones ($4,900,000); fullback Vonta Leach ($4,333,334); linebacker Jameel McClain ($4,200,000).
With G.M. Ozzie Newsome declaring on Thursday that the Ravens won’t be robbing Peter to pay Paul via contract restructurings, the question becomes whether and to what extent any high-priced veterans will be approached with a take-a-pay-cut-or-take-a-hike ultimatum.
The primary candidates to face a dollars-and-cents dilemma are Boldin, Yanda, Jones, Leach, and McClain. Another guy who may get dumped is center Matt Birk, who is due to earn $2.75 million.
It’s a good problem to have, given that the Ravens have just won the Super Bowl. Still, it’s a problem they’ll need to solve if they hope to continue to contend for championships.