<P> The salary cap also served to limit the rate of increase of the cost of operating a team . This has accrued to the owners' benefit, and while the initial cap of $34.6 million has increased to $123 million (maximum in 2009), this is due to large growths of revenue, including merchandising revenues and web enterprises, which ownership is sharing with players as well . </P> <P> The owners opted out of the CBA in 2008, leading to an uncapped season in 2010 . During the season, most NFL teams spent as if there was a cap in place anyway, with the league warning against teams front - loading contracts during the season . The Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints, Oakland Raiders, and Washington Redskins chose to spend money in the spirit of an uncapped year, and in 2012 the Cowboys and Redskins (the top two NFL teams by revenue in 2011) were docked $10 million and $36 million respectively from their salary caps, to be spread over the next two seasons . This $46 million was subsequently divided up among the remaining 26 NFL teams ($1.77 million each) as added cap space (this excludes the Raiders and Saints, the latter of which was also dealing with their ongoing bounty scandal, as both teams were over the cap, though to a lesser degree than the Cowboys and Redskins). </P> <P> The actions of the league to punish those teams that were acting within their legal bounds during the uncapped year led to a lawsuit against them by the NFLPA . The case argued that the rest of the league colluded to keep average player salaries from rising in a year they expected them to skyrocket and unfairly punished teams that did not collude . The NFL settled the lawsuit with the NFLPA . </P> <Table> <Tr> <Th> Year </Th> <Th> Maximum team salary </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2018 </Td> <Td> $177.2 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2017 </Td> <Td> $167.00 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2016 </Td> <Td> $155.27 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2015 </Td> <Td> $143.28 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2014 </Td> <Td> $133 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2013 </Td> <Td> $123 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2012 </Td> <Td> $120.6 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2011 </Td> <Td> $120 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> Uncapped </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2009 </Td> <Td> $123 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2008 </Td> <Td> $116 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2007 </Td> <Td> $109 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2006 </Td> <Td> $102 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2005 </Td> <Td> $85.5 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> $80.582 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2003 </Td> <Td> $75.007 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2002 </Td> <Td> $71.101 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> $67.405 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 2000 </Td> <Td> $62.172 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 1999 </Td> <Td> $57.288 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 1998 </Td> <Td> $52.388 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> $41.454 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> $40.753 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 1995 </Td> <Td> $37.1 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> $34.608 million </Td> </Tr> </Table>

Why doesn't the mlb have a salary cap