Patriots place Franchise tag on NT Vince Wilfork

The New England Patriots placed the Franchise tag on nose tackle Vince Wilfork, the team announced today.  The Patriots are the first club to announce the use of a Franchise tag this season.

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2010 NFL Scouting Combine Schedule

With the 2010 NFL Draft set to open in exactly two months (Thursday night, April 22),  three large NFL-related contingents begin converging  on Indianapolis this week: team personnel, player agents AND more than 325 draft eligible  players who will work out and be interviewed nearly-non stop during their short stay in town.  The following is the Scouting Combine workout schedule at Lucas Oil Stadium: 

Friday, February 26 – Kickers, punters, special teams

Saturday, February 27 – Offensive linemen, tight ends

Sunday, February 28 – Quarterbacks, wide receivers, running backs

Monday, March 1 – Defensive linemen, linebackers

Tuesday, March 2 – Defensive backs

“Tag” Deadline Approaching: Franchise & Transition Tenders

A reminder that the two-week period for clubs to designate 2010 franchise and transition players ends at 4:00 PM ET on Thursday, February 25.  In the uncapped 2010 season, teams have an extra transition tag and can thus designate one franchise player and one transition player OR two transition players. Currently, there are 235 unrestricted free agents.

A franchise player is a designated restricted or unrestricted free agent whose team must tender a one-year contract at the average of the five highest-paid players at the player’s position in 2009, or 120 percent of the player’s 2009 salary, whichever is greater.  A franchise player designation gives the club a first-refusal right to match within seven days an offer sheet given to the player by another club after his contract expires.  If the club matches, it retains the player.  If it does not match, it receives two first-round draft choices as compensation.

A transition player must be offered a minimum of the average of the top 10 salaries at the player’s position in 2009, or 120 percent of the player’s 2009 salary, whichever is greater.  A transition player designation gives the club a first-refusal right to match within seven days an offer sheet given to the player by another club after his contract expires.  If the club matches, it retains the player.  If it does not match, it receives no draft pick compensation from that club.

Below is a position-by-position breakdown of minimum tenders for franchise and transition players in 2010.
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Frequently Asked Questions – Tenders for Restricted Free Agents

Q. What are the different levels of tender offers to this year’s class of Restricted Free Agents and their associated levels of draft choice compensation? 

A. Below is a breakdown of the tender offers, listed by number of accrued seasons, for Restricted Free Agents in 2010.

Player with THREE Accrued Seasons

Right of First Refusal — $1,101,000
Right of First Refusal + Pick in player’s original draft round — $1,101,000*
Right of First Refusal + Second-Round Draft Pick — $1,684,000*
Right of First Refusal + First-Round Draft Pick — $2,396,000*
Right of First Refusal + First- AND Third-Round Draft Picks — $3,043,000*

*or 110% of player’s 2009 Paragraph 5 Salary, whichever is greater

Player with FOUR Accrued Seasons

Right of First Refusal — $1,176,000
Right of First Refusal + Pick in player’s original draft round — $1,176,000*
Right of First Refusal + Second-Round Draft Pick — $1,759,000*
Right of First Refusal + First-Round Draft Pick — $2,521,000*
Right of First Refusal + First- AND Third-Round Draft Picks — $3,168,000*

*or 110% of player’s 2009 Paragraph 5 Salary, whichever is greater

Player with FIVE Accrued Seasons

Right of First Refusal — $1,226,000
Right of First Refusal + Pick in player’s original draft round — $1,226,000*
Right of First Refusal + Second-Round Draft Pick — $1,809,000*
Right of First Refusal + First-Round Draft Pick — $2,621,000*
Right of First Refusal + First- AND Third-Round Draft Picks — $3,268,000*

*or 110% of player’s 2009 Paragraph 5 Salary, whichever is greater

For more FAQs, click here.

2010 Class of Unrestricted Free Agents

The re-signing of Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski and Titans guard Eugene Amano, who were scheduled to be unrestricted free agents next month, has prompted a number of inquiries regarding which other veterans have at least six credited seasons and have a contract that is due to expire.  These players will be free to sign with another club in an uncapped 2010 season starting March 5. 

***UPDATED MARCH 4***

*subject to change

Frequently Asked Questions – Tender and “Final Eight” Rules

Media and avid fans continue to contact league headquarters with questions regarding player personnel rules in an uncapped 2010 season. For example, the Jets announced on Feb. 15 that the team has offered contract tenders to wide receiver-special teamer Brad Smith and safety Eric Smith – both with four credited seasons but who will only be restricted free agents in an uncapped 2010. 

The Jets have 11 restricted free agents this season. The tenders to Smith and Smith give the Jets the right to match any contract offers and, depending on the dollar value of the tender, allow the Jets to receive draft choice compensation if another club signs them.

As one of eight clubs that reached the 2009 Divisional Playoffs, the Jets also are limited in the unrestricted free agent market in the uncapped 2010 season.  Following are some frequently asked questions we have heard recently about the “Final Eight” rule:

Q. Are teams which reached the 2009 NFL Divisional Playoffs able to sign any unrestricted free agents in an uncapped 2010 season?

A. Yes. As per the “Final Eight” rules in an uncapped 2010 season, those eight clubs can sign unrestricted free agents as listed below.  (Note: For all “Final Eight” teams, the unrestricted free agents signed to replace their own lost unrestricted free agents cannot exceed the first year salary — 2010 salary + pro-rated signing bonus – of the player lost with limitations on the per year increases.)

FINAL FOUR CLUBS

Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints – can sign unrestricted free agents only if they lose unrestricted free agents. Saints can sign the same number of unrestricted free agents as the number of their own unrestricted free agents who signed with other clubs.

AFC champion Indianapolis Colts — can sign unrestricted free agents only if they lose unrestricted free agents. Colts can sign the same number of unrestricted free agents as the number of their own unrestricted free agents who signed with other clubs.

NFC runner-up Minnesota Vikings — can sign unrestricted free agents only if they lose unrestricted free agents. Vikings can sign the same number of unrestricted free agents as the number of their own unrestricted free agents who signed with other clubs.

AFC runner-up New York Jets — can sign unrestricted free agents only if they lose unrestricted free agents. Jets can sign the same number of unrestricted free agents as the number of their own unrestricted free agents who signed with other clubs.

FINAL EIGHT CLUBS

AFC Divisional Playoff San Diego Chargers — 1 unrestricted free agent for $5,807,475 or more in Year One of contract + the same number of Chargers unrestricted free agents who sign with other clubs + any unrestricted free agent for less than $3,861,823 in Year One of contract with limitations on per season increases.

AFC Divisional Playoff Baltimore Ravens — 1 unrestricted free agent for $5,807,475 or more in Year One of contract + the same number of Ravens unrestricted free agents who sign with other clubs + any unrestricted free agent for less than $3,861,823 in Year One of contract with limitations on per season increases.

NFC Divisional Playoff Arizona Cardinals — 1 unrestricted free agent for $5,807,475 or more in Year One of contract + the same number of Cardinals unrestricted free agents who sign with other clubs + any unrestricted free agent for less than $3,861,823 in Year One of contract with limitations on per season increases.

NFC Divisional Playoff Dallas Cowboys — 1 unrestricted free agent for $5,807,475 or more in Year One of contract + the same number of Cowboys unrestricted free agents who sign with other clubs + any unrestricted free agent for less than $3,861,823 in Year One of contract with limitations on per season increases.

Q. Can an unrestricted free agent be signed by one club and traded to a “Final Eight” club to circumvent the “Final Eight” rules? 

A. No. A “final eight” team can’t use another team as a pass-through to sign a player it would otherwise be prohibited from signing. For example, if one of the 24 clubs which did not reach the Divisional Playoffs signs an unrestricted free agent, that club can’t trade him to New Orleans unless the Saints also lost an unrestricted free agent who had a Year One salary of equal or greater value than the player acquired in the trade.  In addition, the contract of the player acquired via trade would also have to comply with the yearly contract increase limitation. 

For more FAQs, click here.

No Fiction: No “Holy Grail” in Uncapped Year

“You play your career and set certain targets for yourself, and the four-year [seniority mark] is almost like a Holy Grail to most,” Philadelphia Eagles Pro Bowl fullback Leonard Weaver said in a recent ESPN.com story written by Len Pasquarelli.  

“And then you get to it,” Weaver continued, “and it’s taken away from some people. It’s almost like hitting the [finish] line, and then they stretch the tape a yard or two further.” Weaver has played five seasons – one short of the six needed for unrestricted free agency in an uncapped 2010 season.

Writes Pasquarelli of the unrestricted free agency rules:  “The limit in the past has been four seasons, and the increase to six will have a profound effect.”

For the complete story and a look at Pasquarelli’s Restricted All-Star team, click here.

“Refresher course” on uncapped season

In the February 14 Cleveland Plain Dealer, Tony Grossi offers a “refresher course on what will happen and how the NFL will change for the 2010 off-season.”

The uncapped season rules in 2010, Grossi writes, “seek to maintain competitive balance by making fewer players eligible for free agency and limiting the playoff teams’ ability to sign free agents.”

For Grossi’s complete Q&A on the uncapped 2010 season, click here.

Uncapped Rules: “Big Loss for Performers in Young Man’s Game”

Pete Dougherty examines free agency in an uncapped 2010 in a February 7 Green Bay Press Gazette article entitled “As free agency begins, owners have edge over players.”

Dougherty writes that the more than 200 players who will be restricted free agents in 2010 — rather than unrestricted free agents – is a “big loss for performers in a young man’s game.”

Dougherty also cites the economy as a player in free agency, noting “in today’s weak financial climate, some clubs will be looking to cut costs drastically for the short term, and their biggest expense by far is players.”

For complete story, click here.

NFL “in good hands” with Goodell’s 5-year extension

“Based on his track record thus far, the rest of the NFL must feel it is in good hands,” writes Gregg Rosenthal of Pro Football Talk following Sports Business Daily’s February 12 report of Commissioner Roger Goodell’s five-year contract extension, which includes no increase in salary. 

“The lack of a salary increase along with the security of such a long deal is a powerful statement,” Rosenthal states.

For the complete story, click here.