Kevin Byard brushes off pay cut request from Tennessee Titans | Report

nick gray, nashville tennessean

Fri, Mar 17, 2023, 11:59 PM·2 min read

The Tennessee Titans have approached All-Pro safety Kevin Byard about a pay cut, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Friday.

Byard doesn't believe he deserves a reduced salary, Schefter said in a tweet, and Byard and the Titans are "at a crossroads."

The Titans approached Kevin Byard about a pay cut, but the Pro Bowl safety does not believe his play warrants a decrease in salary.

Byard has wanted to play for one organization and ultimately retire as a Titan, but the two sides are at a crossroads, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 17, 2023

Byard has a $19 million cap hit, per Spotrac, with two seasons remaining on his deal. If Byard was traded before June 1 or not declared as a post-June 1 release, he would cost the Titans $13.6 million in dead cap in 2023. That dead cap number would be spread over 2023 and 2024 if he was traded after June 1 or released as a post-June 1 cut.

As a matter of 2023 cap space, the Titans have $17.3 million in cap room as of Friday afternoon, per Spotrac.

Byard, 29, completed his seventh season in the NFL in January, all with the Titans. The MTSU alum is a two-time All Pro and two-time Pro-Bowl selection. Byard led the team in total tackles (108) and interceptions (4) in 2022, and he has not missed a game since his rookie season.

Tennessee drafted Byard with the No. 64 overall pick in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He signed a five-year, $70.5 million contract extension in July 2019, a deal that made him the highest-paid safety in NFL history.