How the Packers are set to benefit from David Bakhtiari's restructured contract

The start of the offseason has been riddled with financial goals. During the season, the Green Bay Packers gave tackle David Bakhtiari a colossal contract. Bakhtiari generously agreed to turn his $11 million roster bonus into a signing bonus.

The #Packers recently created about $8.3M in cap space by converting LT David Bakhtiari’s more than $11M roster bonus into a signing bonus and spreading it out over the length of the contract. He’ll make the same as before, but it gives GB some room to operate.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 13, 2021

The conversion gets payments spread throughout many years. Overall, the change brought in $8.3 million in cap space for the 2021 season.

David Bakhtiari confirmed the additional cap salary with a meme on his Twitter saying, "You're welcome!"

https://t.co/jLQZdrFwJ3 pic.twitter.com/XCx7G7UTJZ

— David Bakhtiari (@DavidBakhtiari) February 13, 2021

David Bakhtiari's new deal reduces his 2022 cap from almost $19.4 million to $11 million. However, the value is not solely based on generosity. Green Bay's tackle will increase his cap salary by $2.8 million each year from 2022 to 2024.

The expected move was necessary with the dwindling salary cap. At the start of the Packers' offseason, they needed $30 million to get under the cap by the beginning of the NFL season.

David Bakhtiari's bonus seemed to be the most prudent way for immediate cap space.

While the remainder of the salary cap does not affect Bakhtiari's prospects, it guarantees he will be with the Packers for a minimum of three seasons. David Bakhtiari's dead cap charges are $15 million for each of the next three seasons. Green Bay could choose to release him in 2024. By relieving the 29-year-old, the Packers could save $21.5 million with a dead cap charge of $8.8 million.

The Packers had a great team this past season that led them to the NFC championship game. The Green Bay Packers will need the extra money to keep their free agents like Aaron Jones and Corey Linsley. They can also use the cap space to pursue new free agents.

𝐎𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘𝐍𝐅𝐂 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐃𝐀𝐘 🤟#GoPackGo #GoPackGo#GoPackGo #GoPackGo#GoPackGo #GoPackGo#GoPackGo #GoPackGo#GoPackGo #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/EGb83Jhv2B

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) January 24, 2021

Rumors are floating that Green Bay would like to sign defensive end J.J. Watt. Hence the added cap salary could help the Packers sign him for next season.

Green Bay cannot reel in prime-level agents this offseason. But a lack of cap space floats throughout the entire league that could drive down the contract's total prices. The Packers might have access to more desirable players than they would typically have.

The 2021 salary cap has caused drastic changes with many NFL teams. The radical change started with uncertainty around the 2020 season. The Covid-19 pandemic completely changed the way the game operates, primarily because of the lack of fans. The salary cap was $198.2 Million, but the cap went down to $175 million after the coronavirus season.