Yahoo Sports NFL salary cap dictionary: From dead cap to roster bonuses, the terms you need to know
With the NFL offseason in full swing, there are several key terms you need to know.
The NFL's legal tampering period begins Monday at 12 p.m. ET. When the legal tampering period begins, unrestricted free-agents and agents can begin negotiating with teams. Free agency officially starts on March 13 at 4 p.m. ET. A players can formally sign a contract with a team when free agency begins.
USA TODAY Sports provides the terms to be aware of as free agency March Madness begins:
What is the NFL salary cap in 2024?
The NFL announced the 2024 salary cap is set at $255.4 Million.
The NFL salary cap is a rule that places a limit on the amount of money that a team can spend on players' salaries. The NFL introduced the salary cap in 1994.
What is an unrestricted free agent?
A player who is free to negotiate and sign with any team.
What is a restricted free agent?
A player with three accrued seasons and an expired contract. They are free to negotiate and sign with any team, but their original team can offer them a qualifying offer.
What is dead money in the NFL?
Dead money is the salary cap space a team must allocate to a player who has been released.
What is a signing bonus in the NFL?
A signing bonus is fully guaranteed money that a player gets when he signs his contract.
Other terms to know
Base salary: A standard NFL contract. The compensation a player receivers during the regular season.
Exclusive Franchise tag: A one-year contract in which the player is offered the greater of the average of the top five salaries at the player's position for the current year.
Non-exclusive franchise tag: A player receives a one-year contract that is the average of the five largest prior year salaries for players at the position. The player also has an opportunity to negotiate with other teams.
MORE: Learn more about the different types of tags here
Guaranteed money: Compensation amount in a player's contract that is owed to player. A player may sign a $100 million pact with only $50 million of that guaranteed; the rest may be incentives and performance-based payouts.
Cap hit: How money money a player's contract takes up in the annual salary cap.
Offset language: A stipulation in a rookie player's contract if he is released; if the player's contract contains offset language, then if he is released and signs with a new team, he will not be able to "double dip" on new money.
Veteran minimum: Starting salary for a player with more than four or more years of NFL experience.
Contract incentives: Performance-based bonuses.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is dead money? What you need to know about the NFL salary cap
