Lions restructure QB Jared Goff's contract, create $32M in cap room
The Detroit Lions restructured quarterback Jared Goff 's contract, freeing up $32 million in cap room ahead of the start of the new league year.
The Lions entered the week about $5 million below their projected salary cap for 2026 when taking into account the trade of David Montgomery , which will become official at 4 p.m. today.
They needed to create more room to sign free agents, for their 2026 draft class and to execute some of the contract extensions they hope to sign Jahmyr Gibbs , Jack Campbell , Sam LaPorta and Brian Branch to later this spring.
With Goff, the Lions converted $40 million of his base salary into a signing bonus and added an extra void year in 2030. The restructure lowers Goff's cap hit from $69.6 million to $37.6 million in 2026, but increases his cap hit in future years.
Goff now has cap hits of $62.6 million in 2027, $69.6 million in 2028 and $16 million in dead money to account for in 2029, when his contract expires.
The Lions have not processed restructures for Amon-Ra St. Brown , Penei Sewell or any of their other players with big 2026 cap hits, according to NFLPA records, and they did not drop Goff's salary to the league minimum to maximize their cap space.
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Teams have automatic conversion rights in most contracts that allow them to convert whatever portion of a player's base salary into a signing bonus they need in order to create cap room. St. Brown has a cap hit of $33.11 million this fall, and Sewell's cap number is $28 million.
Players still receive all their money in simple contract restructures.
The Lions have agreed to contracts with four players so far in free agency: Center Cade Mays , offensive tackle Larry Borom , running back Isiah Pacheco and quarterback Teddy Bridgewater . They also have reached deals to re-sign cornerback Rock Ya-Sin and linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez .
They remain in the market for help at defensive end , linebacker, tight end and in the secondary.
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com . Follow him on Bluesky , X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Lions restructure QB Jared Goff's contract, create $32M in cap room
