Watching the Oakland Raiders' salary-cap purge has been fascinating.

Last week's Carson Palmer trade, along with Friday's release of linebacker Rolando McClain, all but ended the deconstruction. Moving Palmer, McClain, Tommy Kelly, Richard Seymour, Dave Tollefson and Darrius Heyward-Bey cleared close to $21.2 million of salary-cap room. Twenty players from last year's roster are gone.

The Raiders have $8.69 million of cap room left and will gain another $8 million in June when safety Michael Huff comes off the books. He was designated as a June 1 cut, meaning Oakland must wait until May ends to get the cap relief.

The good news for Raiders fans is that years of being in cap purgatory end after this season. The Raiders currently have $79 million of cap room next year; that's $40 million more than the next closest team. The bad news is that only 21 players are under contract, including only seven making more than $1 million.

The Raiders' "recommitment to excellence" is the key to the future.

At the moment, the Raiders look like the NFL's version of the Houston Astros as far as their payroll. Taking Huff off the books will leave them with a cash payroll of $69 million for 2013. If they keep their current group of seven draft choices, that will cost around $17 million in cash. They've already signed seven players off the street to start on defense, and they still have holes to fill at cornerback and defensive tackle.

The Raiders will gain another

$8 million of space under the salary cap when Michael Huff comes off the books on June 1. AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

You'd figure that puts the Raiders in the low $90 million range for cash.

It will be interesting to see how they handle the low payroll, given the new collective bargaining agreement's requirements. Teams are mandated to pay 89 percent of their salary cap in cash over a four-year average that starts this year. Figuring 89 percent of this year's $123 million cap is around $109 million, the Raiders have around $19 million to play with after they pay their draft choices and add a few more free agents.

What will they do?

Being so far under the 89 percent in the first year might force the Raiders to spend more than they can afford from 2014 to 2016. Ticket sales aren't great for the Silver and Black. To make up the difference, the Raiders might have to bid heavily in free agency, and that could be a problem. The network television money doesn't flow into the team accounts until the season starts. That would leave the Raiders with the early returns of season-ticket renewals to fund the big signing bonuses needed to lure high-priced free agents, which could be a burden.

They could make up some of the difference this year by giving contract extensions to defensive end Lamarr Houston and left tackle Jared Veldheer, starters from the 2010 draft. Both are free agents after this season. They could extend halfback Darren McFadden, who is a free agent after 2013, but it wouldn't be a surprise if they let him go after the season. They could try to extend center Stefen Wisniewski, who is signed through 2014. Other than that group, there aren't a lot of players to extend on the current roster.

Having a lot of cap room can be a good thing. Having too much cap room without a lot of players to re-sign can be a problem. Figuring out the right equation will be a challenge.

From the inbox

Q: I was wondering how the NFL can be so adamant about player safety when it comes to concussions, yet fail to do anything about equipment violations? Players rarely strap up their helmets and many wear theirs way too loose. High school refs throw a flag for these things, so why doesn't the NFL? Just saw a highlight of Aldon Smith sacking Aaron Rodgers, popping up, and seeming to pop his helmet off by touching his facemask with his thumb. Frank Gore got fined over 10 grand for not wearing his socks correctly, but no one is in trouble for this? Seems obvious, but maybe I'm dense.

Jeff in Nebraska

A: The NFL does fine players for equipment violations. If they take their helmet off while on the field, there is supposed to be a penalty. There are plenty of fines in the NFL that aren't reported, and many can be steep. I think the NFL has this under control but the league needs to stay consistent in making sure it executes the fines. Don't think this is being ignored.

Q: A lot of mock drafts have the Raiders taking Sharrif Floyd with the third overall pick (assuming they don't trade down). The scouting reports project him to be a 3-technique defensive tackle. However, do you think there is any consideration to moving Lamarr Houston to his more natural position of defensive tackle? He's 6-foot-6, 300 pounds, but has played out of position at defensive end his whole career because high-priced veterans were manning the middle in Oakland. Now that Seymour and Kelly are gone, moving him back inside makes a lot of sense, and his size and speed seem ideal for a 3-technique. Then they could focus on addressing another hole on the roster.

Eduardo in Huntington Beach, Calif.