Report: NFL salary cap expected to jump to $208.2M in 2022

The NFL's salary cap is set to get back on track in 2022.

Next season's cap is expected to reach the $208.2-million maximum agreed upon by the NFL and NFLPA in May, sources told Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.

The league reportedly will officially set the number next week at the annual labor seminar.

The salary cap dropped from $198.2 million in 2020 to $182.5 million this season as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But with the league and union agreeing to spread the likely multibillion-dollar revenue shortfall over several years, the 2022 cap will be able to return to near its projected trajectory from before the pandemic.

The NFL bolstered its finances by finalizing TV deals, avoiding COVID-19-related cancellations of games so far this season, and bringing fans back to full-capacity stadiums. The expansion of the regular season and the playoffs likely also contributed to the cap bounce.

These factors could lead to the cap spiking "substantially" in 2023, added Rapoport and Pelissero.