Retained Salary player Retiring
If a player with a retained salary retires prior to the end of his contract, does the retention stay on the books for the team that's retaining part of the cap?
Answer
If a player with retained salary retires, all of the player's cap hit is removed, which includes his current team and his former team that retained salary. The exception is a player who was 35+ and signed a multi-year contract, as if that player retires the cap hit remains. However, it is very rare for players to actually retire with an active contract. When a player retires, they no longer receive the pay remaining on their contract. If players have contracts but no longer wish to play, the more common result is that they go on the injured list for the remainder of their contracts as that way they still get paid. In that case, the retained cap hit would remain.
