The Arizona Cardinals have 54 days to decide whether to move on from right tackle Jonah Williams. It seems logical that they would do so.
Williams performed well in the 2024 season. However, he only played six games due to two right knee injuries. That’s problematic, but it’s also why the Cardinals structured the two-year deal he signed as an unrestricted free agent the way they did.
Williams injured his right knee in Week 5 of the 2022 season with the Cincinnati Bengals, but continued to play. However, during a playoff game later that season, his left knee was dislocated, leading to an offseason of rehabilitation work.
He started all 17 games in 2023, but last season’s knee problems started in the first quarter of the season opener. Williams was activated from injured reserve on November 20, but played only five more games before hitting IR again on December 24.
That was nine days after he recovered a remarkable fumble in the end zone for a touchdown in the Week 15 win over the New England Patriots.
So far, the Cardinals have paid Williams $16.78 million, including $14 million signing bonus, $2.5 million salary, $180,000 bonus ($30,000 per game) for playing six games and a $100,000 off-season workout bonus.
For 2025, Williams is currently listed for a salary of $10.78 million, a roster bonus of $1.5 million, a potential maximum total of $510,000 in roster bonuses per game and a roster bonus. $100,000 off-season workout. That’s a $16.06 million salary cap charge that also includes a prorated $3.5 million portion of his signing bonus.
The contract included two void years, so the $14 million signing bonus is spread out over four years for cap purposes. Only $180,000 per game bonus counts against the 2025 cap because he only played in those six games last season.
The key point is that the Cardinals would save more than $3 million against the cap (or at worst, it would be a bust) if Williams were released before the fifth day of the new league year, which begins March 12.
This is because he must be on the roster on the fifth day of the league year (March 16) to receive the roster bonus. Additionally, $2.5 million of his salary, which was injury-only guaranteed upon signing, becomes fully guaranteed if he makes the roster on March 16.
If released before the 16th, the dead money cap would rise to $10.5 million to account for the remaining signing bonus plus $2.5 million of the fully guaranteed 2025 salary at signing for a total of 13 million dollars.
However, the Cardinals may have to pay an additional $2.5 million in cash and cap space if he is not healthy at the time of release. He was injured on December 22, so it’s possible he could be healthy by March 15, although we don’t know the severity of the injury.
Even if he isn’t, the dead money cap would be around $500,000, or less than $16 million. So the overarching question is whether the Cardinals think he can be counted on to be available on a regular basis.
If it’s a close call, they could roll the dice and bring him back while having a backup plan, whether it’s re-signing Kelvin Beachum or further grooming 2024 rookie Christian Jones, who showed promise in his last game against the San Francisco 49ers.
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