Former Pro Bowl kicker Graham Gano will be released today by the Carolina Panthers. Gano has spent the last eight years of his career with Carolina but was hurt all of last year and also finished the 2018 season on injured reserve. The Panthers will save $2.95 million in salary for the year and create $2.75 million in cap space.
Gano, who signed a four year $17 million extension with the team in 2018, will leave the team with $1.5875 million in dead money in 2020 and $1.5375 million in dead money in 2021. The Panthers lead the NFL with over $42.7 million in dead money as they look to reset the books after a few years of some questionable contract decisions. While that strategy has not been very successful for many teams it was probably a necessary step for Carolina this year.
Jason is the founder of OTC and has been studying NFL contracts and the salary cap for over 15 years. Jason has co-authored two books about the NFL, Crunching Numbers and the Drafting Stage, which are widely circulated in the industry and hosts the OTC Podcast. Jason’s work has been featured in various publications including the Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, NFL Network and more. OTC is widely considered the leading authority on contract matters in the NFL.