NFL salary cap space by team after June 1 cuts

The beginning of June is normally the most dead part of the NFL calendar. We’re past the drama of the draft, training camps have yet to begin, and it’s the hand-wringing month where the football itch is back with nothing to satiate it. However, June 2 is a very big deal for the salary cap nerds out there, and could help define in the 2025 NFL season in several ways.

This is when June 1 cuts hit the salary cap. These are some of the largest, most significant contracts in the NFL — and it opens up substantial salary cap space for the teams who have made cuts with the June 1 designation. While the majority of top-tier free agents have been signed, the cap space opened up with these cuts could allow for some serious deals to be made ahead of training camp.

This is a salary cap tool that team use to part ways with players in March who they know they’ll be releasing before the beginning of the league year. Essentially it ensures that players are able to hit the open market and potentially find new teams, while also still having an element of penalty on the teams for signing the failed contracts in the first place.

When a player is released with a June 1 designation the dead money on their contract can be spread over two years, rather than accelerated into the current salary cap. For example, if the New York Jets cut Aaron Rodgers outright in March they would have had a cap hit of $49M in 2025. Now on June 1 they’ll essentially open up $24.5M in space, with the other $24.5M in dead cap hitting in 2026.

This also applies to any players who are released after June 1st, which often happens when veterans lose their spots in training camp, etc.

As we mentioned, the Jets are huge winners in this because of Aaron Rodgers, but also C.J. Mosely, who was another June 1 designation. They move from being roughly $14.8M over the salary cap, to having $18M in available money.

Other big cap winners include the Browns for their cuts of Dalvin Tomlinson and Juan Thornhill, the Eagles releasing James Bradberry and Darius Slay, and the 49ers with Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins.

As a result of these cuts, here is every NFL team ranked by their effective cap space, per OverTheCap.

Obviously we’re all waiting for the shoe to drop on Aaron Rodgers. At this point he’ll either sign with the Steelers, or retire from the NFL. Which way he goes is totally up in the air, and it’s anyone’s guess what will actually happen.

Beyond Rodgers there are a few really interesting players to keep an eye on. The WR market is oddly stacked with potential difference makers. Keenan Allen and Amari Cooper are both on the older end, but it’s surprising to see them without teams yet. Both are potential targets of the 49ers, who open up a lot of space with these June 1 cut designations.

On the defensive side of the ball it’s an even older market, but there are so big-time names who could serve as rotational pieces as their careers wind down. These include pass rushers Von Miller, Matthew Judon, and Jadaveon Clowney — as well as defensive backs like Marcus Williams, James Bradberry, and Justin Simmons.

There’s a very high potential someone will roll the dice on these players to patch holes in their roster or add some veteran leadership.