The Denver Broncos released kicker Brandon McManus on Tuesday in a move that will open up a roster spot and create more salary cap space.
McManus was scheduled to have a $3.65 million base salary this season, plus $100,000 through per-game-day roster bonuses. That combined with his $1,231,250 prorated signing bonus would have given McManus a $4,981,250 salary cap hit this season, according to OverTheCap.com.
That was set to be the sixth-highest cap hit among kickers in 2023, and new coach Sean Payton likely couldn’t justify that after McManus ranked 29th among kickers in field goal percentage (77.8%) last season.
If the Broncos designate McManus as a pre-June 1 cut, the team will eat $2,462,500 worth of “dead money” against the cap with a net savings of $2,518,750 this season, according to OTC.
If the team designates McManus’ release as a post-June 1 cut, Denver will eat $1,231,250 in “dead money” with a net savings of $3.75 million. Regardless of whether it ends up being $2.5 million or $3.75 million in cap savings, the team’s next kicker will likely have a much cheaper contract.
Football’s a business, and teams are always looking to save cap space.
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