(Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)
The National Football League’s free agency period is always full of chaos.
Now more than ever, players and teams fail to reach an agreement on a new deal, but the current CBA still gives the franchise an opportunity to keep them on board.
The franchise tag figure allows the teams to force the players to play for at least another season, and while sometimes it makes them more money than what they would’ve gotten in free agency, it’s not always the best situation for the players.
So, with the free agency frenzy right around the corner, multiple teams are expected to use the tag on some of their biggest stars as soon as today.
According to NFL insider Dov Kleiman, the likeliest candidates to receive the tag today are Lamar Jackson (Baltimore Ravens), Tony Pollard (Dallas Cowboys), Geno Smith (Seattle Seahawks), Daron Payne (Washington Commanders), Evan Engram (Jacksonville Jaguars), and Orlando Brown Jr. (Kansas City Chiefs).
Window for teams to apply the franchise tags on their free-agents is opened today
Attached are the tag numbers
Candidates to be tagged include:#Ravens Lamar Jackson#Seahawks Geno Smith#Cowboys Tony Pollard#Commanders Daron Payne#Jaguars Evan Engram#Chiefs Orlando Brown pic.twitter.com/mvGcS9qF6V
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) February 21, 2023
The players aren’t usually fond of the tag, as it gives them no freedom to negotiate and pursue another step in their careers, not to mention the injury risk that comes with football.
Basically, you could suffer a season-ending injury on a one-year deal instead of signing a four or five-year contract somewhere else — or even with your same team.
Both parties are likely to revisit the franchise tag figure in the next CBA, and some of the players could even threaten to sit out and not play unless the team agrees to trade them somewhere else.
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