With less than 24 hours left between now and the opening round of Sunday games for the 2012 season, it seems appropriate to take a look at which teams have been saving the most. Oddly enough, it's the Eagles with the most cap space in the league. Here's the complete list as of Friday, September 7th:
Eagles: $21.4 million
Jaguars: $20.7 million
Chiefs: $14.5 million
Titans: $14.1 million
Bills: $13.6 million
Browns: $13.4 million
Buccaneers: $13.2 million
Seahawks: $13.2 million
Broncos: $12.3 million
Bengals: $10.4 million
Patriots: $8.4 million
Vikings: $8.2 million
Dolphins: $7.1 million
Packers: $6.9 million
Cardinals: $6.6 million
Redskins: $6.1 million
Jets: $5.9 million
Cowboys: $5.7 million
Colts: $5.3 million
Panthers: $5.3 million
Bears: $4.5 million
Saints: $4.1 million
Rams: $4.0 million
Chargers: $3.5 million
Raiders: $2.3 million
Giants: $2.2 million
Lions: $2.0 million
Steelers; $1.6 million
Ravens: $1.4 million
Falcons: $1.3 million
Texans: $882,000
49ers: $880,000
It's worth noting that the 7 teams will the least amount of cap space all made the playoffs in 2011. Whether that pattern of spending will hold true again in 2012 has yet to be seen.
That's also not to say that a team can't spend wisely and be a contender, as the Eagles have demonstrated this offseason. They have what many believe to be one of the most talented teams in the league, and they have more available cap space than any other team in the league. That level of cap flexibility could pay off for years to come as well.
