DETROIT, MICHIGAN – SEPTEMBER 11: Safety Tracy Walker III #21 of the Detroit Lions celebrates a sack in the second quarter of the game at Ford Field on September 11, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
It’s not necessarily a move that was expected to open up cap space, but the Detroit Lions have restructured the contract of safety Tracy Walker.
The Detroit Lions entered free agency with a solid amount of cap space, and a path to creating a whole lot more. After a deal with cornerback Cameron Sutton and the re-signings of Alex Anzalone and Isaiah Buggs on Monday, moves to create cap room seemed likely on Tuesday.
According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the Lions have created $5 million in cap space by restructuring the contract of safety Tracy Walker.
Walker signed a three-year, $25 million deal to stay with the Lions in free agency last offseason. He was due to make $8.95 million in base salary this year. It looks like 2025 was tacked on as a void year, and his base salary was dropped to about $1 million for 2023.
Per Over The Cap, Walker’s 2023 cap hit dropped from $11.4 million to shade over $6 million.
After the deals for Sutton, Anzalone, etc, Over The Cap had the Lions with about $14 million in cap space. Offensive tackle Matt Nelson was also re-signed on Tuesday, after not being tendered as a restricted free agent.
What’s the Lions next move after the Tracy Walker restructure?
A layer that should be mentioned is Walker’s recovery from a torn Achilles in Week 3 last season. By his own social media accounts his rehab is going very well, but it’s major injury from which recovery isn’t always linear. The Lions probably won’t be making a major move to add a safety this offseason, but Walker’s current injury status is worth noting.
So will the Lions make a significant signing or re-signing on Tuesday? Are more moves to clear cap space coming? Restructuring Walker was not on the top of the list of potential cap-clearing moves, but if feels like it’s only a teaser for things to come.