2024 NFL Franchise Tag Primer & Tracker

By Ha Kung Wong

Twitter/X: @FBGarbageTime

It’s that time again!  Super Bowl is over and teams are getting ready to re-sign or sign players in free agency, and the first major step is the Franchise and Transition Tag.  Don’t know what the Franchise and Transition tag are?  No worries, we got you covered and we’ll be tracking tags throughout the tag timeframe, so keep checking back for updates!

NFL Free Agency and Franchise Tag Primer

There are 3 types of tags a team can use in the offseason:

  • Exclusive Franchise Tag
    • This tag binds the player to his team. The player cannot seek offer sheet from another team.  The value of the exclusive franchise tag is the average of the top 5 salaries at the player’s position for the current year or 120% of his previous salary (whichever is greater). These numbers aren’t available until after the end of restricted free agency.
  • Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag
    • This tag allows the player to sign an offer sheet with another team. The original team has the right to match the offer or receive two first-round draft picks in compensation if the player leaves.  The value of the nonexclusive tag is the average of the top 5 salaries at the player’s position over the last 5 years or 120% of his previous salary (whichever is greater).  See below for the set values for 2024.
  • Transition Tag
    • This tag allows the player to sign an offer sheet with another team, except it provides the original team the right to match the other team’s offer. If the original team decides not to match, it gets no compensation when the player leaves. The value of the transition tag is the average of the top 10 salaries at the position.  See below for the set values for 2024.

Players must be tagged by March 5 at 4 PM ET.

The legal tampering period begins on March 11 at 12 PM to March 13 at 4 PM ET at which time Free Agency opens.

After being tagged, the player and team have until July 15 to sign a long-term contract or the player will play on the one-year deal based on the tag value, or, as we’ve seen with some players recently, hold out.

Here are the actual 2024 values of the Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag and Transition Tag have been set per position:

The 2024 Salary Cap per team is $255.4 Million, the single largest annual increase in the NFL Salary Cap since the Salary Cap started in 1994, apparently in large part due to a significant increase in media revenues.  What this means is that every team should have more to work with in building their roster offseason, including what they have to sign long term contracts after tagging players.

 

Franchise and Transition Tag Tracker

And what that said, here’s players who have been tagged:

Tee Higgins

WR – Cincinnati Bengals

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag – $21,816,000

Brian Burns

OLB – Carolina Panthers

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag ~ $24,000,000

Michael Pittman Jr.

WR – Indianapolis Colts

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag – $21,816,000

Kyle Dugger

S – New England Patriots

Transition Tag – $13,815,000

Antoine Winfield Jr.

S – Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag – $17,123,000

Jaylon Johnson

CB – Chicago Bears

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag – $19,802,000

Josh Allen

LB – Jacksonville Jaguars

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag – $22,748,000

Justin Madubuike

DT – Baltimore Ravens

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag – $22,102,000

L’Jarius Sneed

CB – Kansas City Chiefs

Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag – $19,802,000

tagged with ,