When an agreement was finally reached between the owners and players, reports began surfacing that teams were forced to spend a certain amount of money to reach a cash floor. We've read reports that, for our circumstance, the Bengals would have to spend 89, 90, 95% of the team's $120 million salary cap. Excitement with the prospect that Bengals owner Mike Brown would be forced to spend between $30-40 million was through the roof.
As deals were being dealt across the league, Bengals fans began wondering, why aren't the Bengals using that money that they have to spend? Why couldn't the Bengals use the money that they're forced to spend to keep their top player in free agency? The answer. They didn't have to. Even we at Cincy Jungle were confused. Receiving talking points from the NFL regarding the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, there was nothing in the document suggesting individual teams were forced to spend money to reach a cash floor for the 2011 and 2012 seasons.
Joe Reedy of the Cincinnati Enquirer clears that up.
Bengals player rep Andrew Whitworth confirmed Friday that the team minimums do not exist until 2013. So for those who hoped that the Bengals would have to exhaust a large portion of the nearly $45 million in available cap room this season, they likely will have to wait for two more seasons.
This season and next, the CBA requires that league-wide, teams spend 99 percent of the cap in cash. Teams can borrow up to $3 million in cap room from a future year Although bonus money can be pro-rated each year over the lifetime of the player's contract, the entire bonus can be applied toward the league's cash spending requirement for this year.