In today's salary cap NFL, no team can pay everyone, but with the cap increasing significantly most seasons, teams are clearly spending more, but at the same time, the contracts being signed are simply keeping up with the cap increase.
In recent years, we have seen the quarterback contract market balloon to $60 million per year, and the wide receiver market is also rapidly growing. With free agency approaching, teams will take to the open market and try to spend the right amount of money to secure key players to fill roster holes.
Using salary cap data from Over The Cap, we power ranked all 32 teams from least to most cap space and lightly talked about what each club could do in the offseason.
Ranking all 32 teams based on their cap space as free agency approaches
32. Minnesota Vikings - ($43.2 million)
It's hard to imagine the Minnesota Vikings are all that aggressive this offseason outside of searching for a modest quarterback upgrade.
31. Dallas Cowboys - ($30.1 million)
If the Dallas Cowboys are serious enough, they'll find a way to keep George Pickens and add a notable player or two on the defensive side of the ball.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars - ($13.2 million)
Jacksonville had an insane breakout season, but General Manager James Gladstone is in the beginning stages of undoing the Trent Baalke era.
29. Buffalo Bills - ($12.3 million)
Buffalo needs serious help at wide receiver and all over the defense, but also have key free agents they might not be able to afford.
28. Kansas City Chiefs - ($11.3 million)
Kansas City restructured Patrick Mahomes' deal, which was not a surprise, but that doesn't change the underwhelming status of the roster.
27. Detroit Lions - ($9.6 million)
Detroit simply needs better injury luck, as this roster is supremely talented when healthy.
26. New Orleans Saints - ($8.2 million)
The New Orleans Saints seemed to get out of that 'salary cap hell' they were in for years and could be a frisky squad in 2026.
25. Chicago Bears - ($5.3 million)
Chicago had an amazing season but still has some work to do to free up more space to address the defensive line.
24. Houston Texans - ($4.7 million)
Houston should look to add another starter along the offensive line, but they don't have a ton of money to play with right now.
23. Green Bay Packers - ($1.5 million)
Green Bay needs some help in the secondary and could lose left tackle Rasheed Walker in free agency this offseason.
22. Miami Dolphins - $3.1 million
Miami has gotten to work with the roster reset and could continue that as free agency rolls around.
21. Cleveland Browns - $3.2 million
Cleveland may lose their entire starting offensive line from 2025 to free agency, and there isn't a clear path to success in 2026 for this franchise.
20. New York Giants - $5.1 million
New York currently has just over $5 million in available space but are in a new, promising era with John Harbaugh.
19. Carolina Panthers - $12.5 million
Carolina has a good roster overall but could use a pass rush boost and, honestly, has to figure out a quarterback upgrade at some point down the line.
18. Philadelphia Eagles - $18.1 million
Philadelphia needs some secondary help and currently has just under $20 million to play around with.
17. Baltimore Ravens - $22 million
First-year head coach Jesse Minter could see his new team spending a bit in free agency to fix the defense.
16. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - $23.4 million
Tampa Bay needs front seven help in the worst way. but they did see a notable regression across the board in 2025.
15. Atlanta Falcons - $26.4 million
Atlanta has Kevin Stefanski installed as the head coach, replacing the fired Raheem Morris. The Falcons, most importantly, has to figure out what the quarterback position looks like in 2026.
14. Denver Broncos - $28.8 million
After coming within one game of the Super Bowl, the Denver Broncos do have enough cap space right now to swing a few notable signings to try and get over the edge.
13. Indianapolis Colts - $35.7 million
Indianapolis could target Trey Hendrickson in free agency and reunite him with Lou Anarumo, and Daniel Jones is likely to return as well.
12. Arizona Cardinals - $39.1 million
If nothing else, the bottom-feeding Arizona Cardinals have just under $40 million in cap space to buy some talent this offseason.
11. New England Patriots - $40.5 million
After making it to the Super Bowl, the New England Patriots have a good bit of cap space and could look to address the offensive and defensive line this offseason.
10. San Francisco 49ers - $41.1 million
San Francisco's pass rush might have been the worst in the NFL in 2025, so I'd be shocked if that wasn't a huge point of emphasis this coming offseason as they look to build on a successful 2025 season.
9. Pittsburgh Steelers - $44.9 million
Pittsburgh again went one-and-done in the playoffs in 2025, but Aaron Rodgers isn't guaranteed to return, so this team is as uncertain as any heading into the offseason.
8. Los Angeles Rams - $44.9 million
It almost feels unfair that Los Angeles has the eighth-most cap space in the NFL this offseason and two first-round picks. The secondary is going to see at least one major addition this offseason.
7. Cincinnati Bengals - $53.4 million
Once again, the Cincinnati Bengals have a ton of space. It would be nice to see this team spending a bit to help out Joe Burrow.
6. Seattle Seahawks - $61.8 million
The Super Bowl champions have nearly $62 million in cap space this offseason. It's John Schneider's league, we're just living in it.
5. Washington Commanders - $73.6 million
The Washington Commanders simply need to buy some talent this offseason, as the roster is largely average and dealt with notable injuries last year as well.
4. New York Jets - $79.3 million
The New York Jets are building, and it's going to take some time. With nearly $80 million in cap space, the Jets, in theory, could hit on some picks in 2026 and 2027, including at quarterback, and burst onto the scene in a few seasons.
3. Los Angeles Chargers - $82.9 million
Offensive line is going to be a huge priority for the Los Angeles Chargers this offseason, and they'll have over $80 million in space to fix it.
2. Las Vegas Raiders - $91.5 million
Las Vegas is likely taking Fernando Mendoza with the first overalll pick, and they could simply outbid other teams this offseason for talent.
1. Tennessee Titans - $103.5 million
No team in the NFL has more cap space than the Tennessee Titans, who have over $100 million. Tennessee may have a special quarterback in Cam Ward, but the front office has to build up this roster and give Ward more help.