Let freedom ring: Contracts NFC teams would love to jettison

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp.

On July 4, Americans celebrate their many freedoms.

NFL teams, meanwhile, would like to celebrate their freedom from onerous contracts that appeared to be money well spent at the time but are now anything but.

In the spirit of the holiday, Yardbarker NFL writers identify a contract each NFC team would like to jettison.

NFC East 

DALLAS COWBOYS | QB Dak Prescott | Do the cap-strapped Cowboys want to pay $60M to keep their starting quarterback or pay $40M in dead money without him in 2025? Prescott led the league with 36 touchdown passes last season, but at these prices, it could be time to see what Trey Lance — the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft — can do.

NEW YORK GIANTS | WR Darius Slayton | By jettisoning this contract, the Giants would save $7.75M against the cap while clearing the way for young pass-catchers such as Isaiah Hodgins, Wan'Dale Robinson and first-round pick Malik Nabers. Slayton may have been the team's leading receiver in four of the past five seasons, but his career high of 770 yards receiving ranked 46th at the position in 2023.

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES | CB James Bradberry | According to Reuben Frank of nbcsportsphiladelphia.com, Bradberry’s 11 passing touchdowns allowed were the most on record since Stathead started keeping the stat in 2018. With rookie prospects such as Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell (this year’s first-round pick) on the roster, Bradberry was scheduled to take safety reps during minicamp but exited drills with an undisclosed injury. He's entering the second season of a three-year, $38M contract.

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS | WR Jahan Dotson | Dotson has just 84 catches for 1,041 yards and 11 TD catches since joining the team in 2022 as the 16th overall pick in the draft. Washington would love to move on from last season’s 86th-leading receiver, but a $4.1M cap hit and $8.8M in dead money (10th most on the team) make it difficult to do so. — Bruce Ewing

NFC West 

ARIZONA CARDINALS | QB Kyler Murray | Murray is one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL (five-year, $230.5M deal), but the results (28-36-1 as a starter) haven't justified the contract. While he has had moments of brilliance and is a good player, he has not yet shown — at least not consistently — that he is one of the elite players even when fully healthy.

LOS ANGELES RAMS | WR Cooper Kupp | At his peak, Kupp was one of the Rams’ best players and one of the best offensive players in the league. He's 31 and showing signs of slowing — just 21 games played the past two years and only 59 catches in 2023 — and his $80.1M contract looks excessive.

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS | DL Javon Hargrave | It's not that Hargrave’s first season in San Francisco was bad, and he certainly isn’t a bad player. It’s just that he did not play like the $84M lineman he is being paid to be. If he does not have a better 2024 season, he is going to start looking like one of the biggest free-agent busts in recent memory.

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS | DL Dre’Mont Jones | Jones signed a three-year, $51.53M contract in free agency prior to the 2023 season, making him one of the best free-agent signings of the Pete Carroll era in Seattle. After one year, the Seahawks have already restructured his contract and are asking him to switch to outside linebacker under first-year head coach Mike Macdonald. — Adam Gretz

NFC North 

CHICAGO BEARS | LB Tremaine Edmunds | Entering the second season of a four-year, $72M deal with the Bears, Edmunds will carry the highest cap hit ($22.4M) among linebackers in 2024. One can argue that Edmunds (69 solo tackles, zero sacks, four interceptions in 2023) wasn't the best player at the position on his own team, with T.J. Edwards supplying more consistent production (91 tackles, 2.5 sacks, three interceptions) and a much lower hit to Chicago's cap ($7.5M).

DETROIT LIONS | QB Jared Goff | Handing Goff a four-year, $212M extension after coming so close to reaching the Super Bowl was simply the price of doing business for the Lions. However, the contract comes with cap hits of $27.2M (2024), $32.6M (2025), $69.6M (2026) and $54.6M (2027), which could hamper Detroit's ability to keep its core together over the next few seasons.

GREEN BAY PACKERS | DL Kenny Clark | Despite decent production in 2023 (7.5 sacks, two forced fumbles), Clark accounts for 10.76% ($27.4M) of the cap entering the final season of a four-year, $70M  deal. The 28-year-old may be worth keeping, and extension talks with Green Bay have occurred recently, but a friendly cap number would help ease future financial concerns, especially with a massive contract for quarterback Jordan Love looming.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS | CB Byron Murphy | Murphy is more than serviceable, recording 43 tackles, three interceptions and a forced fumble last season. However, despite playing mainly the nickel role in the Vikings' defense, he carries one of the highest cap hits ($10.9M) among cornerbacks in the NFL — that's money and space Minnesota could use better elsewhere. — Mike Santa Barbara

NFC South

ATLANTA FALCONS | QB Kirk Cousins | The cap ramifications of jettisoning Cousins would be astronomic. Maybe Atlanta’s front office should have thought about that before drafting Cousins’ replacement, Michael Penix Jr., a month after handing the former Viking a four-year, $180M deal.

CAROLINA PANTHERS | RB Miles Sanders | Carolina zigged last season where most front offices zagged, signing Sanders to a four-year, $25.4M contract. After a season in which he was outperformed by backup Chuba Hubbard, who’s still on his rookie contract, it only makes sense for the Panthers to cut bait with the former Eagle.

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS | CB Marshon Lattimore | A trade would be preferable, but with New Orleans toiling in mediocrity and Lattimore a corner who could help a Super Bowl contender, parting ways would be smart for the Saints. New Orleans wouldn’t see any savings on the five-year, $97.6M contract Lattimore signed in 2021 until 2025, when it could be in the middle of a needed rebuild.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS | Kicker Chase McLaughlin | McLaughlin was a bargain in 2023 after signing for the veteran minimum last offseason, making 93.5% of his field goals and all of his extra points. But we’re looking at his $5M cap hit this season and willing to take our chances on a cheaper alternative. — Eric Smithling

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