Jerry Hughes To Cost Colts $2.1 Million In Dead Cap For 2013

It really says something about how a team values a player when they are willing to take on $2.1 million in dead cap money to be rid of him. That's the case with the Colts and their former outside linebacker Jerry Hughes, drafted in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft. Hughes was traded Monday to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for inside linebacker Kelvin Sheppard.

For the Colts to account for Hughes' signing bonus from his rookie deal, they must eat $2.1 in dead money this season. This means $2.1 mill will count against Indy's cap in 2013 even though Hughes is in Buffalo.

This move saves Indianapolis only $186,250, according to Mike Chappell of the Indianapolis Star.

Assuming that Indy now must also account of some of Sheppard's salary on their books, it actually looks as if it was more expensive overall to ship Hughes off to Buffalo than it was to simply keep him.

And that, right there, should tell you all you need to know about how the Colts front office truly felt about Jerry Hughes.