The NFL has a number of important dates during the year that teams pay close attention to. The June 1 date is important because that is a break in the offseason where players released following that date counts less for the current year's salary cap than those released before that date. Now that the Dallas Cowboys' official release of Tony Romo took place on June 1, they now have a huge bump in their salary cap room. With the $14 million they save by releasing Romo after June 1, they have $20 million to spend this season.
The Cowboys' salary cap space
Here is how the Tony Romo release worked out for the Dallas Cowboys. By releasing Romo but not making it official until post-June 1, Dallas was allowed to spread his $24.7 million salary-cap hit over two seasons. That means that he will count $10 million this year and $8.9 million next year. They get a full $14 million in cap space added on right now, which, added to the $5.689 million they already had in cap space on June 1, puts them at almost $20 million in cap space.
Will the Cowboys sign a free agent with the money?
Of course, the first thing people might ask is if the Dallas Cowboys will use the money saved by cutting Tony Romo to sign a free agent. The answer to that is no.
All the free agents worth big money deals are gone now and the only people left are small-time players and people who are either asking too much or are more trouble than they are worth. Besides, Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones has made it abundantly clear that Dallas is no longer a team that tries to win by paying out big money contracts for other team's castoffs.
Could the Cowboys offer up a trade with the extra money?
The next question is whether the Dallas Cowboys will use the extra money to make a trade for a player they can now afford. Dallas needs pass rushers and Sheldon Richardson is a name they could seek. All the NFL rumors last month surrounding the Cowboys' trade possibilities concerned cornerback Richard Sherman.
Both could help now but are not worth the money Dallas would pay them. However, never say never to a big trade to improve the Cowboys' defense.
Here is what the Tony Romo money should be used for
When wondering what the Dallas Cowboys will do with this extra money, look no further than locking up their most important free agent to a long-term deal. Dallas already has center Travis Frederick and tackle Tyron Smith locked up. Now it is time to lock up guard Zack Martin to a long term deal. Also, most of the money will just be carried over to 2018 so the Cowboys can use it if injuries or sudden trade offers happen during the NFL season.
