Yesterday, I took at look at something of a doomsday scenario as far as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ ability to create cap space is concerned. Needless to say, their options are quite limited if there is no new Collective Bargaining Agreement, as the rules of a final year of a CBA include the 30 percent rule, which directly impacts their favorite means of creating cap space: restructuring deals by converting pay to signing bonuses that can be spread out over time.
I showed yesterday that even ‘maxing out’ the six most flexible contracts for renegotiation, including Ben Roethlisberger, Stephon Tuitt, and David DeCastro, would barely even yield enough for half of what it would cost to put the franchise tag on Bud Dupree.