The franchise tag window closed yesterday at 4:00est and without knowing the final cap numbers, nine teams designated franchise players: Washington, Dallas, New Orleans, Denver, Jacksonville, New York, Chicago, Carolina, & Tampa Bay.
The Tagged
QB Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
For those that do not know QB Dak Prescott has already signed a 6-year deal with the Cowboys and being tagged as a procedural move to suit his no-tag clause. This ensures that in 2028 if Prescott is not extended by Dallas he will hit the market to cash in once more. Jerry Jones' cap acrobatics are getting impressive at this point, for a team that had to decide whether or not to pay Demarco Murray or Dez Bryant in 2014 has come a long way to be able to pay all three of their offensive superstars handsomely.
OG Brandon Scherff, Washington Football Team
A second tag for one of the few elite talents at guard in the NFL. After the tag Scherff is now the highest-paid player on the team this season with a bit of cap room left to go. My biggest question is why can't the WFT pay Scherff? They seem to have no problem paying castoffs big money (Landon Collins) so it seems ludicrous to me that they refuse to give homegrown talent a hefty payday to lock in their future with the team.
S Marcus Williams, New Orleans Saints
More cap acrobatics for New Orleans. Many are amazed at the fact that the Saints are allowed to pull this stunt off. After this tag, the Saints stand at a grand total of -$33 million in cap space. They have restructured what looks like countless contracts in recent weeks and have many key players hitting the market this year and still have a lot of work to do.
S Justin Simmons, Denver Broncos
Another safety of the board as Simmons is the third player this season to be tagged for a second time. The Broncos definitely value him seriously so it looks as though a genuine long-term deal is in near future for the star safety.
OT Cam Robinson, Jacksonville Jaguars
Jaguars do something right for once and keep around a strong LT for incoming QB Trevor Lawrence. A one-year tag is enough to keep him around to get Lawrence acclimated to the league and the Jags can evaluate him after that as their main priority is keeping their young QB safe (unlike the Bengals).
S Marcus Maye, New York Jets
WR Allen Robinson, Chicago Bears
By far the biggest surprise of the day, the Bears really did it. Robinson hates Chicago and wants out, all of us expected the Bears to cut their losses and let him free, but the madlads really did it. Robinson returns to a middling Bears team that will throw out any random quarterback next season not named Russell Wilson. Nick Foles? Probably. Mitch Trubisky? Maybe. Alex Smith? Good chance. Mac Jones? Could happen. Sam Darnold? If they're lucky(?). Things are not looking good here and I am saddened to see AR12 waste another season away in the Windy City.
OT Taylor Moton, Carolina Panthers
Arguably a Top 10 Tackle in the NFL the Panthers keep their hand on RT Taylor Moton. Expected to either a) Draft a QB or b) Trade for Deshaun Watson, the Panthers need to solidify something on the OL to get the most out of their offense.
WR Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Godwin won the tag war between him and OLB Shaq "The Sack Ferrett" Barrett. I for one am surprised slightly as I felt that Godwin might have been on the odd man out in the Bucs' loaded offense between Mike Evans and the Brady Cult (Gronk & MBC). While Barrett offered a strong presence on the defense. Tampa Bay is dead set on running it back in 2021 so I won't be surprised if we see the Sack Ferrett back in pewter on a team-friendly deal.
Surprisingly Free
OLB Bud Dupree
The Steelers won a single game after Dupree went down. Coincidence? Probably, but it is no lie that he is an asset for that great defense. The Steelers are not in the greatest cap situation with the return of "Leader of Men" Big Ben Roethlisberger so this is a sad business decision. Another reason being thrown around is that EDGE T.J. Watt has been making Dupree look good. I would not mind taking a chance on the linebacker with a high floor.
OT Trent Williams
The best tackle in the league that crawled his way out of the depths of hell (Washington) and forced a trade to San Francisco is hitting the market finally. I expect him to earn a big payday and every team should be putting an offer in for this guy. The Jaguars, Jets, and Patriots are all in need of OL and have considerably more space than the other 29 teams in the league, expect them to be big hitters this offseason.
WR Kenny Golladay
I guess the Lions think Tyrell Williams is better than Golladay, but in all seriousness, this confirms that the Lions will likely take the top WR on their board in the draft. Surprisingly Detroit will not tag the underrated WR. Prior to being taken out for most of the 2020 season, he put up two 1000 yard seasons for the Lions. The Miami Dolphins are expected to be big players in the weapons department and now that Allen Robison is out of the picture, Golladay will be WR numero uno for most this offseason.
C Corey Linsley
Another top OL hitting the free-agent market. I assume that the Packers do not want to be good and Aaron Rodgers floats them to greatness every season. Without getting weapons, protecting him, and drafting quarterbacks early it's weird that Aaron Rodgers is still in town. Anyways, similarly to Trent Williams, most teams should be in on Linsley and he has already been linked to the Chargers via former teammate Bryan Bulaga...Iowa.
CB William Jackson III
One bright spot on the dark stripes of the Cinncinati Bengals, Jackson III finished the season as PFF's 20th rank corner and is rightly deserving of a paycheck to be a team's CB1. Rumors have surfaced that the Vikings are interested in bringing in Jackson III to fix their defensive woes.
S John Johnson III
Coming in at number 3 on PFF's Safety grades, John Johnson III is the final surprise not-tagged on my list. The Rams are typically in cap space hell as they now surpass the Saints with -$41 million. If New Orleans can tag the Minneapolis Miracle the Rams should be able to do the same. Expect Johnson to be targeted by plenty of teams this offseason.
by Brandon McCann
Comments
Post a Comment