Falcons dead money total tops $41M after Kaleb McGary's retirement

The Atlanta Falcons acted quickly upon learning of right tackle Kaleb McGary's retirement on Wednesday, agreeing to terms with former Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor on a one-year deal roughly an hour after the news broke.

McGary has been a key piece of Atlanta's offensive line over the last seven seasons, but Taylor is a solid replacement considering the circumstances. One positive from McGary's retirement is that it will save the team roughly $14 million in salary cap space in 2026 and 2027, while incurring a dead cap hit of $3 million.

While the Falcons haven't officially signed Taylor, he has reportedly agreed to a one-year, $5 million contract with another $1 million in incentives, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The team currently has around $24.8 million in salary cap space, per Over The Cap, but that number will come down to around $19.8 million once the Taylor signing becomes official. In terms of dead cap, the Falcons have surpassed the $40 million mark for 2026.

Falcons dead money totals for 2026

• Kirk Cousins: $22,500,000
• Darnell Mooney: $11,000,000
• Kaleb McGary: $3,000,000
• David Onyemata: $2,425,000
• Younghoe Koo: $1,250,000
• Morgan Fox: $750,000
• KhaDarel Hodge: $625,000
• TOTAL: $41,844,465

As you can see, the team's dead money total is up to $41.8 million following McGary's retirement. Kirk Cousins' has the Falcons' highest dead money hit at $22.5 million, followed by wide receiver Darnell Mooney ($11 million). Check out the team's updated offensive line depth chart projection for 2026.

This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Atlanta Falcons: Salary cap impact of Kaleb McGary retirement