The Saints are about to gain tons of cap space without lifting a finger thanks to two players who no longer play for them

The New Orleans Saints are about to officially garner some good graces when it comes to their money this offseason. 

A salary cap shift for the Saints

The Saints are expected to gain the most salary cap space of any team soon, according to OverTheCap. The retirements of both quarterback Derek Carr and offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk are both set to process. 

Carr has a $20.46 million cap charge which will drop to either $13.458 million or $19.207 million depending on how the league views a signing bonus he agreed to return/not receive from the team. In either case the carryover is the same as the near $6 million difference between the two numbers would be added to the Saints cap room next season for money not earned. Carr will count for a gigantic $36.674 million on the 2026 cap.

Ramczyk had already reworked his deal to allow for this so there are almost no savings there. The team will gain just $1.25 million with his 2025 dead money at $11.08 million and his 2026 dead money at $11.98 million. The Saints should be at $30 million in cap room which will mainly be used as carryover. -- OverTheCap

New Orleans has already prepared their roster with a mindset that these players won't be in the fold. Carr's surprise retirement is most likely a reason that the Saints address the position in round two of the 2025 NFL Draft. 

They picked QB Tyler Shough with the 40th overall selection. Meanwhile, they also selected Kelvin Banks Jr. in this year's draft, with their first-round pick. 

Even with these moves becoming processed, it remains to be seen if the Saints will attempt to add to their roster in free agency, ahead of training camp or the preseason. We will see how aggressive they are ahead of a season where many folks expect them to struggle.