Let us dive in on Nashville SC’s…
Designated players
Hany Mukhtar
what hany mukhtar is a dp i can’t believe it. Mukhtar’s 2024 guaranteed compensation was around $5.2 million according to the Players Association release. That (extraordinarily unsurprisingly) puts him well above the cuff for a buy-down in TAM range. Mukhtar is under contract through 2026, with an option for 2027.
Walker Zimmerman
Just under $3.5 million, Zimmerman is also well into the “can’t buy this guy down” range. His contract is guaranteed through this season with no option years. That could lead to some interesting decisions for club (is a DP centerback worth the spot in MLS, particularly with a new coaching regime and new priorities, and if not can we finagle ways to get him in as a TAM player?) and player (do I want that one shot at a European career? If not, is NSC the best option while remaining in MLS?) in the not-too-distant future.
Sam Surridge
Like the two mainstays, Surridge is well above the range to be a potential buydown player (about $2.9 million). He has the same term as Mukhtar: guaranteed through 2026 with a 2027 option.
U22 initiative players
Nashville has two U-22 initiative players on the roster – and given their roster model (three senior DPs) that leaves one U-22 slot open, should the club want to sign another player at that distinction in the summer window (though some overall space on the roster will need to be cleared in that instance). U-22 players can make up to the maximum budget charge of $743,750, but there is no limit on acquisition costs. Essentially, the best use-case is boom-or-bust players signing out of their home (usually but not always South or Central American) countries for the first time. The risk for acquisition costs is lowered but you’re not signing established stars who will demand higher salaries (and the risk from a budget perspective is lowered there are well, with a hit of $150k or $200k depending on age).
Ahmed Qasem
Since Qasem is new to the league, we don’t have salary data on him, but given his age (21), we know he hits the budget at $200k. He’s guaranteed through 2027 with an option for 2028. Qasem is U22-eligible through the 2028 season.
Patrick Yazbek
Yazbek hits the same age band as Qasem, so he hits the budget at $200k (U22 players who are 20 or younger only count $150k against the cap), and his guaranteed compensation was about $490k last year. His contract runs through 2027 – the last year for which he’s U22-eligible, as he turns 25 that April – with an option for 2028.
TAM players
Tyler Boyd
Boyd’s injury-affected first year in Nashville saw him make $775k. That’s within about 30 thousand bucks of not qualifying as a TAM player ($743,750 or greater), so there’s some serious flexibility down the road if it’s deemed necessary.* He’s guaranteed through 2026 with an option for 2027.
Gaston Brugman
Brugman made $1.4 million from the Galaxy last year (his trade was clearly a salary dump from the Galaxy’s perspective, especially considering Nashville was paying part of LA’s portion of the salary for Sean Davis before the Galaxy released him). That’s to NSC’s benefit, given a healthy Brugman (knock on every piece of wood you’ve ever seen in your life) is a DP-caliber player. He’s right where the sweet spot of effective TAM use lives. He’s guaranteed through this year with an option for next year,
Jack Maher
Maher, at about $795k, is in a similar salary band to Boyd wherein there’s some flexibility as to how he fits into the big picture of the roster, especially if Nashville wants to make summer signings. He’s fully guaranteed through 2027 with no option years.
* Essentially, GAM is usable for a player in Boyd’s or Maher’s situation to get below the maximum budget charge, whereas TAM is usable only for players above the maximum budget charge. If Nashville wants to bring in a high-dollar guy in the $1.7 million range, using TAM on that player’s budget charge and GAM on Boyd’s or Maher’s makes it easier to fit multiple puzzle pieces together.
Other senior roster
Not gonna go into granular detail on all these guys, but age, salary (2024), and contract lengths for the remainder…
| Player | Age | 2024 salary | Contract through… | Notes |
| Bryan Acosta | 31 | N/A | 2025 (opt. 2026) | Signed from Honduran league |
| Teal Bunbury | 35 | $285,000 | 2025 | |
| Dan Lovitz | 33 | $573,744 | 2025 (opt. 2026) | |
| Alex Muyl | 29 | $525,000 | 2025 (opt. 2026) | |
| Andy Najar | 31 | N/A | 2025 (opt. 2026) | Signed from Honduran league |
| Jeisson Palacios | 30 | N/A | 2026 (opt. 2027) | Signed from Colombian league |
| Jonathan Perez | 22 | 2025 | On loan from LA Galaxy | |
| Jacob Shaffelburg | 25 | $395,000 | 2026 (opt. 2027) | |
| Edvard Tagseth | 24 | N/A | 2026 (opt. 2027) | Signed from Norwegian league |
| Joe Willis | 36 | $658,333 | 2025 (opt. 2026) |
As you can see, NSC is not locked into a ton of senior roster guys beyond this year (Palacios, Shaffelburg, and Tagseth), but has flexibility to retain pretty much any of them without needing a new contract (Teal Bunbury the exception, and flexibility with his spot makes some sense).
Supplemental roster
Same as the above. Supplemental roster players don’t hit the salary cap, but they have a maximum budget hit of $104k to be eligible for this category (slots 21-24) with those in slots 25-30 coming in at 24 or younger, and making the reserve minimum salary ($80,622) or on homegrown or Generation Adidas contracts.
| Player | Age | 2024 salary | Contract through… | Notes |
| Chris Applewhite | 17 | N/A | 2027 (opt. 2028-29) | Homegrown, new signing |
| Josh Bauer | 26 | $94,202 | 2026 (opt. 2027) | Signed new contract in offseason. At/near senior min. |
| Matthew Corcoran | 19 | N/A | 2027 (opt. 2028-29) | Signed from USL |
| Julian Gaines | 22 | $71,401 | 2025 (opt. 2026) | Age-eligible to stay at reserve min. |
| Wyatt Meyer | 23 | N/A | 2025 (opt. 2026-28) | Signed from college |
| Woobens Pacius | 23 | $71,401 | 2025 (opt. 2026-27) | Out on loan to Tampa Bay Rowdies |
| Brian Schwake | 23 | N/A | 2026 (opt. 2027) | Signed from Spanish second division |
| Xavier Valdez | 21 | $99,427 | 2025 (opt. 2026-27) | Was HG for Dynamo last year, not HG-eligible for Nashville |
| Taylor Washington | 31 | $89,716 | 2025 | At/near Senior min. |
Somewhat refreshingly, the vast majority of Nashville SC’s players on the supplemental roster are age-eligible for slots 25-30, and all but Bauer/Washington should be age-eligible again next year, too.
Others
These guys are not on the active roster, and therefore are ineligible to compete for the senior team except on short-term loan. I believe Ekk is not eligible to be added to the active roster until next year, while Jones and Sipic (as off-roster players who are signed) could come in the summer window if NSC has roster space.
| Player | Age | 2024 salary | Contract through… | Notes |
| Maximus Ekk | 19 | N/A | 2025 (opt. 2026-28) | Signed from Huntsville, season-long loan to Huntsville |
| Isaiah Jones | 18 | $75,401 | 2027 (opt. 2028) | Homegrown, off-roster |
| Adem Sipic | 18 | N/A | 2027 (opt. 2028) | Homegrown, off-roster |
All three will play in Huntsville (unless Jones or Sipic gets a USL loan for another level of preparation) for the vast majority of their minutes this year.
Club and Country 