Jan. 30, 2026, 8:15 p.m. ET
On Friday, the NFL informed the Detroit Lions and all of the league’s clubs of its projected 2026 salary cap range.
Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the NFL informed teams that it is projecting the salary cap in the range of $301.2 million to $305.7 million per club. That would be up from this year’s $279.2 million cap number. It also represents nearly a $100 million increase from the $208.2 million cap in 2022.
The NFL’s projected 2026 salary cap range is nearly double the $155.27 million salary cap that the league had a decade ago during the 2016 season.
Here’s a look at the NFL salary cap’s growth over the past decade:
2016: $155.27M2017: $167M2018: $177.2M2019: $188.2M2020: $198.2M2021: $182.5M2022: $208.2M2023: $224.8M2024: $255.4M2025: $279.2M2026: $301.2M-$305.7M (projected)Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.
Per Spotrac, the Lions would be $8.26 million over the cap at the midpoint of the projected 2026 salary cap range ($303.5 million).
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