After three seasons with the Bengals, Alex Cappa‘s time with the organization has come to an end. The veteran guard was released on Monday, per a team announcement. 
Cappa was added in 2022, the offseason in which Cincinnati aimed to rebuild much of its offensive line in very short order. He played out his rookie contract with the Buccaneers, spending three seasons as a full-time starter. That helped Cappa land a four-year, $35MM free agent pact with the Bengals.
No guaranteed salary remains on that deal for the 2025 campaign, however, a factor which made the 30-year-old a release candidate. This move thus comes as little surprise as a cost-cutting measure. The Bengals will generate $8MM in cap space with this release while incurring a dead money charge of $2.25MM.
Cappa handled starting right guard duties during his Bengals tenure, and he only missed one regular season game along the way. After producing a PFF evaluation roughly in line with his Buccaneers seasons, though, the former third-rounder saw his grade plummet to 50.5. That represents by far the worst mark of his career as a starter. In addition to gaining additional financial flexibility, the Bengals’ decision to move on will be aimed at finding an upgrade along the interior.
The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. noted before the Combine both guard spots could be targets for the Bengals during this year’s draft (subscription required). With Cappa now out of the picture and Cody Ford a pending free agent, attention will increasingly turn to Cordell Volson. The 2022 fourth-round has started 48 of his 50 appearances to date, but as he approaches the final year of his rookie pact Cincinnati could look to find a replacement this offseason.
With the team’s latest cost-shedding move having been made, the Bengals now find themselves with nearly $69MM in cap space. They have work to do with the likes of pending free agent Tee Higgins along with extensions for Ja’Marr Chase and Trey Hendrickson, but today’s news means they have even more financial wiggle room in their bid to keep all three members of that trio in the fold.
$69 million and it still may not be enough to sign all three.
On straight salary without cap gymnastics they need close to 100M for the 3
Gotta save some Cappa space !