Salary cap recap 03.21.18: Patriots end day with $10,558,238 in cap space

Here's a look at some of the moves the Patriots have made in the last few days and their overall impact on the salary cap.



1) We learned the official numbers for Matt Tobin. ESPN's Mike Reiss reported it's for one year, $815,000. According to Reiss, "the deal doesn't include a signing bonus. Tobin gets a base salary of $790,000, and can earn an additional $25,000 in a workout bonus. His salary-cap charge is $655,000. There is also a split salary of $458,000 in the event of injury." This move took up $25,000 in cap space, as Tobin's $655,000 cap number displaced Ted Karras's $630,000 salary from the Top 51 list. Please note Mike later confirmed for me that none of Tobin's salary is guaranteed, making this a really low-risk move for the Patriots. Tobin now has the 49th highest cap number on the Patriots roster. Please check out Greg Bedard's analysis here.)

2) Please note that while we're waiting for the official numbers for Matthew Slater. Reiss reported it was a two-year deal. I need more details before I can update my salary cap space number, like his salary, signing bonus amount, offseason workout bonus amount (if any), roster bonus amount (if any) and LTBE incentive amount (if any).

3) While I expect Patrick Chung's extension will lower his 2018 cap number of $3.8 million, please note we're still waiting for the official numbers. I need more of the same details as Slater's deal.

Answering some logical follow-up questions:

Question: What does split salary mean?

Answer: The player's salary is lowered if and when he is placed on IR or PUP.

Question: If the Patriots release Tobin, what will be his dead money?

Answer: $25,000 -- his offseason workout bonus.

Question: Why is Tobin's salary so high?

Answer: Tobin's $790,000 is the minimum for a player with his number of credited seasons (five).

Question: If Tobin's salary is $790,000, why is his cap number $655,000 less than that?

Answer: Because his deal qualifies for the Minimum Salary Benefit treatment. When a veteran deal qualifies for Minimum Salary Benefit treatment, only $630,000 of the player's salary counts against the team's cap, and the remaining salary is considered a benefit. Tobin's $655,000 cap number consists of the $630,000 salary that is counting against the cap and his $25,000 offseason workout bonus.

Question: Do you expect Cordarrelle Patterson and the Patriots to lower Patterson's $3.25 million cap number?

Answer: Yes, I do. In fact, I now expect the savings to in effect pay for Slater.

Question: How many active offensive tackles are now on the Patriots roster?

Answer: Four.

1. Tobin


2. Cole Croston


3. Andrew Jelks


4. Marcus Cannon

1. 1st round (No. 31): their original assigned pick


2. 2nd round (No. 43): From the 49ers as part of the Jimmy Garoppolo trade


3. 2nd round (No. 63): their original assigned pick


4. 3rd round (No. 95): their original assigned pick


5. 4th round (No. 136): Compensatory pick for Jabaal Sheard


6. 6th round (No. 210): From the Raiders as part of the Patterson trade


7. 7th round (No. 219): From the Browns as part of the Jason McCourty trade

1. 1st round: their original assigned pick


2. 2nd round: their original assigned pick


3. 4th round: their original assigned pick


4. 5th round: their original assigned pick


5. 7th round: their original assigned pick