Building the best NFL team money can buy under the 2026 salary cap
With the NFL salary cap breaking the $300 million ceiling this season, one might think it would be kind of a walk in the park to pull together an all-star roster that would fit under that upper limit in 2026. And it would have been -- if all we needed were 22 starters.
As was true last year, the most challenging aspect was figuring out how to arrange the best possible combination of players. And I wanted to do a better job than I did in 2025 of squeezing the most possible value out of each opening, from 1 to 53.
Which made the whole project even more engrossing than it was a year ago, to the point that I found myself trying to find the best $3 million pass-rushers while waiting for appointments or in line at the pharmacy. If you are looking for something football-related to obsess over this offseason, I would highly recommend making your own spreadsheet and trying to come up with a better list of names than I have here.
Before we dig in, I have to remind you that this roster cannot actually be bought in real life. Putting together a non-theoretical team involves drafting players, negotiating long-term deals and accounting for factors like future cap hits and dead money. I didn't have to worry about any of that, or any deals that are agreed to or moves that are made after today's date, which came in handy with some newly extension-eligible youngers. The goal was to make the best possible use of the cap this year, using only the cap hits for 2026 -- which still does, I think, illustrate something about the limitations teams have to deal with and the occasionally surprising short-term affordability of some of the game's biggest talents.
Here are some of the other ground rules I followed, adapted from the parameters previously developed by my former colleague Anthony Holzman-Escareno:
- A maximum of 24 players on rookie contracts were allowed, with the following per-round limitations: four who were first-round picks, four who were second-round picks, four who were third-round picks and up to 12 players drafted between Rounds 4 and 7. Players on rookie contracts are noted below, along with the round they were selected in. For example, a first-round pick is marked as R-1.
- Players set to play on fifth-year rookie options in 2026 and undrafted players did not count against the rookie-contract cap; such players are so noted.
- All cap figures were sourced from Over The Cap.
- Players are listed with the age they will be on Sept. 9, when the 2026 NFL season is expected to kick off.
Here's how the final numbers tallied up:
- Total salary cap: $301,200,000
- Salary-cap space used: $300,348,340
- Total space remaining: $851,660
And here's the starting lineup:
OFFENSE PLAYER DEFENSE PLAYER
QB Patrick Mahomes EDGE Myles Garrett
RB Bijan Robinson EDGE Will Anderson
WR Ja'Marr Chase IDL Byron Murphy
WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba IDL Kobie Turner
WR Puka Nacua LB Jack Campbell
TE Trey McBride LB Edgerrin Cooper
LT Garett Bolles CB Derek Stingley
LG Tyler Smith CB Trent McDuffie
C Luke Wattenberg S Kyle Hamilton
RG Quinn Meinerz S Xavier McKinney
RT Darnell Wright NB Cooper DeJean
Now, the full breakdown:
QUARTERBACK (2)
$35,953,888 total (11.9% of cap)
Kansas City Chiefs · Year 10 · Age: 30
2026 cap number: $34,653,888
Minnesota Vikings · Year 8 · Age: 29
2026 cap number: $1,300,000
RUNNING BACKS (4)
$14,848,432 total (4.9% of cap)
Atlanta Falcons · Year 4 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $6,986,810 (R-1)
Detroit Lions · Year 4 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $5,677,999 (R-1)
Chicago Bears · Year 2 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $1,037,035 (R-7)
New York Giants · Year 3 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $1,146,588 (R-5)
WIDE RECEIVERS (6)
$52,614,188 total (17.5% of cap)
Cincinnati Bengals · Year 6 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $26,171,176
Seattle Seahawks · Year 4 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $10,371,329
Los Angeles Rams · Year 4 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $5,828,245 (R-5)
Denver Broncos · Year 6 · Age: 27
2026 cap number: $4,878,200
San Francisco 49ers · Year 13 · Age: 33
2026 cap number: $4,250,000
Tennessee Titans · Year 2 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $1,115,238 (R-4)
TIGHT ENDS (3)
$11,318,528 total (3.8% of cap)
Arizona Cardinals · Year 4 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $8,701,000
Cleveland Browns · Year 2 · Age: 22
2026 cap number: $1,532,474 (R-3)
Buffalo Bills · Year 2 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $1,085,054 (R-5)
OFFENSIVE LINE (9)
$45,948,659 total (15.3% of cap)
Denver Broncos · LT · Year 10 · Age: 34
2026 cap number: $8,452,000
Dallas Cowboys · LG · Year 5 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $10,302,300
Denver Broncos · C · Year 5 · Age: 28
2026 cap number: $3,572,000
Denver Broncos · RG · Year 6 · Age: 27
2026 cap number: $9,208,200
Chicago Bears · RT · Year 4 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $6,671,722 (R-1)
Los Angeles Rams · OT · Year 4 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $1,206,245 (R-5)
Carolina Panthers · OT · Year 5 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $4,000,000
Indianapolis Colts · C · Year 3 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $1,269,968 (R-4)
Pittsburgh Steelers · G · Year 3 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $1,266,224 (R-4)
EDGE RUSHERS (6)
$48,793,636 total (16.2% of cap)
Los Angeles Rams · Year 10 · Age: 30
2026 cap number: $9,140,000
Houston Texans · Year 4 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $13,197,330
Detroit Lions · Year 5 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $10,146,400
Denver Broncos · Year 5 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $8,421,200
Tampa Bay Buccaneers · Year 4 · Age: 27
2026 cap number: $3,917,711 (R-3)
Cleveland Browns · Year 5 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $3,970,995
INTERIOR DEFENSIVE LINE (5)
$16,404,188 total (5.4% of cap)
Los Angeles Rams · Year 4 · Age: 27
2025 cap number: $4,154,267 (R-3)
Seattle Seahawks · Year 3 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $4,386,306 (R-1)
New York Jets · Year 3 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $1,663,404 (R-2)
Philadelphia Eagles · Year 4 · Age: 25
2025 cap number: $3,693,446 (R-7)
Houston Texans · Year 6 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $2,506,765
LINEBACKERS (5)
$12,182,931 total (4.04% of cap)
Detroit Lions · Year 4 · Age: 26
2026 cap number: $4,794,239
Cleveland Browns · Year 2 · Age: 23
2026 cap number: $2,681,909 (R-2)
Green Bay Packers · Year 3 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $2,345,160 (R-2)
Los Angeles Rams · Year 3 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $1,078,000 (UDFA)
Tennessee Titans · Year 3 · Age: 23
2026 cap number: $1,283,623 (R-4)
CORNERBACKS (6)
$32,199,827 total (10.7% of cap)
Houston Texans · Year 5 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $10,791,000
Los Angeles Rams · Year 5 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $10,800,000
Philadelphia Eagles · Year 3 · Age: 23
2026 cap number: $2,531,897 (R-2)
New York Jets · Year 6 · Age: 27
2026 cap number: $3,500,000
Los Angeles Chargers · Year 3 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $1,168,930 (R-5)
Philadelphia Eagles · Year 5 · Age: 27
2026 cap number: $3,408,000
SAFETIES (4)
$23,209,063 total (7.7% of cap)
Baltimore Ravens · Year 5 · Age: 25
2026 cap number: $10,682,604
Green Bay Packers · Year 7 · Age: 28
2026 cap number: $9,860,235
Atlanta Falcons · Year 2 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $1,406,490 (R-3)
San Francisco 49ers · Year 3 · Age: 24
2026 cap number: $1,259,734 (R-4)
SPECIAL TEAMS (3)
$6,875,000 total (2.3% of cap)
Dallas Cowboys · K · Year 4 · Age: 31
2026 cap number: $3,400,000 (UDFA)
Tennessee Titans · P · Year 7 · Age: 29
2026 cap number: $1,375,000
Jacksonville Jaguars · LS · Year 7 · Age: 29
2026 cap number: $1,375,000
