SportsMoney How The New Orleans Saints Can Escape their Future Salary Cap Hole Tyler Small Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. I cover how money in sports impacts your team’s decisions. May 31, 2022, 03:21pm EDT | Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 07: Michael Thomas #13 of the New Orleans Saints reacts after his team . . . [+] defeated the Carolina Panthers during the NFC Wild Card playoff game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 7, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) Getty Images While every team has found themselves under the salary cap threshold ahead of the 2022 season (with the 49ers squeaking under by less than $150,000), this is not the case for 2023. As of today, there are 13 teams in the negative for available cap space, with the New Orleans Saints leading the group with -$64 million. Although funds may not be an issue heading into the upcoming year, with over $8 million available, the Saints are currently on pace for a potential one-year window, before being forced to rebuild ahead of 2023. But that does not have to be the case if the teams begin making difficult decisions soon. But, what will it take to improve the outlook of the team? Firstly, it’s cutting some recognizable faces. After not playing the entirety of the 2021 season and trade rumors swirling, the idea of letting Michael Thomas go may not be as difficult to hear for Saints fans as it once was. Thomas’ contract is an average cap hit of $27,850,000 over 2023 and 2024, where this upcoming year the bill is only $13 million. Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Saints fully expect Thomas to suit up for the team this year, thus dismissing the trade possibility ahead of 2022. Since this year would be the most lucrative for a team to trade for the back-to-back receptions leader in the NFL, it is difficult to imagine a contender taking on that two-year cap hit without the discount year. Especially with how teams operate big contracts like Thomas’ nowadays. MORE FOR YOU WWE Extreme Rules 2021 Results: Winners, News And Notes As Roman Reigns Beats The Demon The World’s Highest-Paid Soccer Players 2021: Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo Reclaims Top Spot From PSG’s Lionel Messi The Good, Bad And Ugly From The Green Bay Packers’ Win Over The San Francisco 49ers Organizations rarely trade for $20+ million AAV contracts since teams are usually forced to cut them and eat the dead cap, which then opens an avenue for Thomas with pretty much any team. So, if a trade can be made, that is always the best route to receive even a draft pick in return and take around $28 million off the team’s cap hit. But, if it comes down to cutting Thomas after the season, at least $2. 8 million will come out of the -$64 million hole, leaving other players to be handled. To go alongside cutting Thomas, the man throwing him the ball may be one of the top players able to bring a return to the Saints. Before suffering a season-ending injury in 2021, Jameis Winston looked like a completely different player in NOLA than in Tampa Bay, where he racked up 5,109 yards and 33 touchdowns to 30 interceptions. The Saints were off to a 5-2 start in 2021, where Winston’s TD/INT ration was his career best, at 14/3. NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - NOVEMBER 15: Jameis Winston #2 of the New Orleans Saints looks to attempt a . . . [+] pass during their game against the San Francisco 49ers at Mercedes-Benz Superdome on November 15, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) Getty Images The Saints believed in Winston enough to resign him to a two-year, $28 million dollar contract, which is significantly back-loaded for 2023. This is one of several moves from the Saints that allowed a chance to compete this year, in sacrifice of the future years of the organization. If the Saints play to expectations in what should be a two-team division, the risk could pay off before the burden of next year arrives. But, if the season looks to be going off the rails, Winston should be the first name on the trade block, despite personal performance. Even though the dead cap almost quadruples the actual cap hit this year, next year provides a cap gain of over $4 million dollars, $15. 6 in total if the Saints can find a way to either push back his dead cap allowance or fit it into their 2022 spendings. More times than not, the price tag of the quarterback is usually what pushes teams into these difficult decisions. The upside of Winston at a price well under the average of the position may be a fitting choice for either a team looking for their franchise quarterback, or a mid-season deal for a playoff contender who loses their QB1. Lastly, the unfortunate side of a situation like this is for the players that could play a large role on the future of New Orleans, that may be let go simply because they don’t have any dead cap associated with their contract. This is a move we recently saw from the New York Giants, who cut arguably their best member of the defense (James Bradberry) just to be able to get $10. 1 million back under the cap. Salary wise, the Saints would most likely be forced to do this players like defensive end Car Granderson, a $4. 1 million cap hit in 2023 with no dead cap, tight end Nick Vannett ($3. 4 million cap, $300,000 dead cap) or even kicker Will Lutz ($5. 6 million cap, $1. 9 million dead cap). NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 16: Wil Lutz #3 of the New Orleans Saints celebrates after kicking the . . . [+] game winning field goal during the second half of a game against the Carolina Panthers at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 16, 2016 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Saints won 41-38. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) Getty Images Although most of these moves seem too small for the uphill battle the Saints front office have in front of them, this is the case for just about any team attempting to figure out the financial picture for the future. Some players will unfortunately get hurt, others will even retire, which will shrink the negative number in the 2023 cap room column. However, what it mostly comes down to is negotiating with players to restructure their deals, signing or drafting cheaper pieces to fill our a roster, and eventually making the difficult decision to trade or release players that deserve to be on the field. This is why more times than not it is fun to play General Manager, not actually be one. *All financial figures found via Spotrac Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn . Tyler Small Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.