NOTE: The following Chicago Bears infographic was contributed by our friends at Olivet Nazarent University, home of the Bears training camp. Please take a moment to see the other wonderful things they are doing.
In 2015, the Chicago Bears are projected to have a salary cap of $144,606,834, with total liabilities (or guaranteed money) of $136,298,355, leaving $8,309,479 in cap space. The following looks to examine player salary both individually and by position.
High Earners:
- The defensive line, which usually has a few high profile names, is projected to earn over $30 million this season
- The offensive line is projected to earn just under $20 million
- The four quarterbacks are projected to earn around $18.5 million, driven largely by Jay Cutler’s $16.5 million salary, making him the highest paid Bear.
As shown in the infographic, there is a discrepancy between what we assume players make versus their average salary after you remove the very top players’ salary. The average run-of-the-mill running back earns around $500K-600K, and most offensive linemen and linebackers earn marginally less at $435K-$665K. It’s certainly nothing to scoff at, but is considerably lower than many expect.
Many fans will be surprised to learn how underpaid some players seem when taking into account what they bring to the team. Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery earns a little under $1.5 million, which means he is not in the top 20 Bears salaries — fellow receivers Eddie Royal and Kevin White both have higher salaries.
At first glance, the projected salaries for the season might seem on the low end. Safeties are projected to earn $12 million this season — which isn’t bad — but only $5.3 million in 2016 (the 2016 projections only include players under contract through next season, of course).
You can ask a thousand Bears fans and get just as many differing opinions as to how the Bears should spend their money.
Main image credit:
