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For 2016, the Detroit Lions have 40 players under contract and $109,398,641 committed to the salary cap. That may seem like a lot, but keep in mind that many of the players currently under contract for 2016 are undrafted free agents who signed earlier this year. Also keep in mind that many of these players likely won't even make it beyond the final round of roster cuts this summer, so quite a few contracts for 2016 will come off the books in the coming months.
Here's the full rundown for 2016:
| Player | 2016 cap hit | Player | Savings if cut | |||
| WR | Calvin Johnson | $24,008,000 | QB | Matthew Stafford | $11,500,000 | |
| QB | Matthew Stafford | $22,500,000 | WR | Calvin Johnson | $11,092,000 | |
| LB | Stephen Tulloch | $7,300,000 | LB | Stephen Tulloch | $6,000,000 | |
| WR | Golden Tate | $6,350,000 | RB | Reggie Bush | $4,000,000 | |
| DE | Ziggy Ansah | $5,916,439 | S | Glover Quin | $3,700,000 | |
| S | Glover Quin | $5,800,000 | TE | Brandon Pettigrew | $2,650,000 | |
| RB | Reggie Bush | $5,000,000 | RB | Joique Bell | $2,000,000 | |
| TE | Brandon Pettigrew | $4,650,000 | WR | Golden Tate | $1,550,000 | |
| TE | Eric Ebron | $3,340,676 | CB | Darius Slay | $1,126,269 | |
| RB | Joique Bell | $3,000,000 | S | Don Carey | $810,000 | |
| CB | Darius Slay | $1,682,960 | OG | Larry Warford | $758,000 | |
| LB | Kyle Van Noy | $1,391,483 | DE | Devin Taylor | $675,000 | |
| S | Don Carey | $1,010,000 | P | Sam Martin | $675,000 | |
| OG | Larry Warford | $932,250 | RB | Theo Riddick | $675,000 | |
| C | Travis Swanson | $804,815 | OT | Michael Williams | $675,000 | |
| DE | Devin Taylor | $750,146 | OT | Cornelius Lucas | $600,000 | |
| P | Sam Martin | $715,075 | FB | Chad Abram | $600,000 | |
| RB | Theo Riddick | $697,750 | S | Jerome Couplin | $600,000 | |
| OT | Michael Williams | $691,287 | CB | Mohammed Seisay | $600,000 | |
| DE | Larry Webster | $675,146 | TE | Jacob Maxwell | $600,000 | |
| CB | Nevin Lawson | $675,146 | WR | Andrew Peacock | $600,000 | |
| DT | Caraun Reid | $647,220 | OG | D.J. Morrell | $600,000 | |
| WR | TJ Jones | $626,550 | OG | A.J. Dalton | $600,000 | |
| K | Nate Freese | $614,856 | LB | Justin Jackson | $600,000 | |
| OT | Cornelius Lucas | $606,668 | S | Gabe Lynn | $600,000 | |
| FB | Chad Abram | $602,500 | QB | James Franklin | $600,000 | |
| S | Jerome Couplin | $602,000 | OG | Alex Bullard | $600,000 | |
| CB | Mohammed Seisay | $601,668 | TE | Jordan Thompson | $600,000 | |
| TE | Jacob Maxwell | $601,000 | OT | Bryce Quigley | $600,000 | |
| WR | Andrew Peacock | $600,834 | DE | Kalonji Kashama | $600,000 | |
| OG | D.J. Morrell | $600,834 | DT | Gregory Hickman | $600,000 | |
| OG | A.J. Dalton | $600,834 | K | Nate Freese | $585,144 | |
| LB | Justin Jackson | $600,834 | WR | TJ Jones | $573,450 | |
| S | Gabe Lynn | $600,834 | DT | Caraun Reid | $552,780 | |
| QB | James Franklin | $600,668 | DE | Larry Webster | $524,854 | |
| OG | Alex Bullard | $600,168 | CB | Nevin Lawson | $524,854 | |
| TE | Jordan Thompson | $600,000 | C | Travis Swanson | $485,132 | |
| OT | Bryce Quigley | $600,000 | LB | Kyle Van Noy | $376,173 | |
| DE | Kalonji Kashama | $600,000 | -- | Dead money | $0 | |
| DT | Gregory Hickman | $600,000 | DE | Ziggy Ansah | $0 | |
| -- | Dead money | $0 | TE | Eric Ebron | -$3,897,455 |
The biggest cap hits for 2016 belong to Calvin Johnson and Matthew Stafford. Johnson is set to have a massive $24 million cap hit, while Stafford is set to count $22.5 million against the cap. The Lions could save around $22.6 million by moving Johnson and Stafford off the roster, but that wouldn't exactly be worth losing your franchise quarterback and the game's best wide receiver.
More likely cap casualties for two years from now are guys like Stephen Tulloch, Reggie Bush, Glover Quin and Brandon Pettigrew. These are players who would free up a notable amount of cap space if let go, and it's actually conceivable that releasing them would be worthwhile by the time 2016 rolls around. That's not to say that any of these players will actually be let go, but it's certainly more likely than the Lions parting ways with Johnson or Stafford.
What stands out to you about the Lions' 2016 salary cap?
(Once again, special thanks to the Free Press, Spotrac, Over the Cap and the NFLPA. I couldn't have assembled these numbers without the great resources provided by those four sites.)
Previously: General overview, 2014, 2015