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Heading into the 2013 NFL league year (i.e. a little bit more than a year ago), the Buffalo Bills carried $9.82 million over from their 2012 salary cap into the offseason. They will nearly double that figure in cap carryover this spring, but that doesn't necessary mean the team has a ton of money to spend.
ESPN's Kevin Seifert reports that the Bills are projected to carry roughly $17.8 million from their 2013 cap into the 2014 league year when it begins on March 11. That's the fourth-highest carryover in the NFL, but ESPN's Mike Rodak was quick to point out that because the Bills have already committed $125.1 million to next year's cap (expected to be between $126-128 million), which is the thirteenth-most in the NFL at present, their cap space will hover right around the midpoint of the league.
NFL teams must submit, in writing, their cap space carryover to the league two weeks prior to the start of the new league year. Today, the NFLPA calculates that the Bills have $18.1 million in cap room for their Top 51 contracts. The NFL will not resume Top 51 calculations until the new league year begins, which likely accounts for the small discrepancy.
The Bills can, of course, free up some additional cap space by releasing veteran players if they deem it necessary. They still have a little over three weeks to make those decisions.
