Salary Cap Digest: Breaking Down Kansas City Chiefs Biggest Cap Hits

Jan 4, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Dwayne Bowe (82) makes a catch while being defended by Indianapolis Colts defensive back Josh Gordy (27), but was unable to keep in bounds during the fourth quarter of the 2013 AFC wild card playoff football game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

DWAYNE BOWE

2014 Cap Hit: $12 million
Potential Cap Savings If Cut/Traded: negative-$4,250,00
Remaining Contract: Four years, $52 million

Here’s something interesting to know about Dwayne Bowe: He made “only” $750,000 in base salary next year. Granted, it is easy to do that when you know an $8 million pay raise is coming in the following year, but it does say something about Bowe’s willingness to help the team.

I mention this because there is a very, very low probability Bowe’s cap cost will be lowered for the 2014. Should Kansas City cut or trade Bowe they would actually lose salary cap space. This is obviously counterproductive to what they are trying to do. Bowe is going to be a Chiefs no matter what in 2014.

Bowe’s contract construction suggests the Chiefs made the deal knowing what they were up against in 2014 and beyond in terms of the cap. This means the Chiefs were perfectly okay with Bowe taking up $12 million in space in 2014. Instead of trying to create room for 2014, they wanted to be sure they could fit everyone they could into 2013.

Something to keep in mind with Bowe is he can be cut as soon as next offseason. While his contract has four years remaining, the important thing is the guaranteed money. By the end of 2014 the Chiefs will have paid off a significant amount of the guaranteed money owed to Bowe, which will allow the team to save $5 million against the cap if they decided to cut him next offseason (his cap number is $14 million for 2015). What is more likely is the Chiefs window to cut him beings after the 2015 season, but it is important to note the Chiefs really only committed themselves to two years of Bowe, with 2014 being the second year.

The likelihood of a restructure is low because Bowe just signed last offseason, but it isn’t completely out of the question. Expect for Bowe to remain at the $12 million mark for the 2014 season.