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Super Bowl LVIII is behind us and the Kansas City Chiefs are the world champions for the second time in a row and the third time in the last five years. After another thrilling and unusual season, it is time to start looking ahead to the 2024 offseason and the fireworks that are sure to come with it. The first major event of the NFL offseason is free agency.
The concept of free agency is rather simple: unsigned players can sign with new teams for more money. Players get paid for their performance, and teams can improve by adding talent to the depleted positions on their roster. However, the process of free agency is very intricate and quite complex, but fear not, I am here to break it all down for you in my NFL Free Agency Primer series.
Throughout this series, we will discuss the franchise and transition tags, restricted and unrestricted free agents, and tenders available to teams to protect themselves from losing a valuable player. We will also discuss the misunderstood legal tampering period. However, before we discuss the ins and outs of the NFL free agency process, let’s take a look at the important dates to know so that you can follow along with the league and know what to expect coming up.
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All times indicated are Eastern Standard Time (EST)
February 20, 2024 - The first day NFL teams can apply the franchise or transition tag.
We are currently in this period of the NFL offseason. Teams are currently deciding which players they are going to use a franchise tag or transition tag on to protect themselves from losing players that they covet if they are unable to come to a long-term agreement.
March 5, 2024 - 4:00 p.m. - The deadline for NFL teams to apply the franchise or transition tag on their players.
If a team has not placed the franchise or transition tag on a player set for free agency by this deadline, that player is officially an unrestricted free agent.
March 11, 2024 - 12:00 p.m. - The start time of the legal tampering/negotiation period.
The legal tampering/negotiation period is a short window where players’ agents are allowed to negotiate with NFL teams before the official start of the NFL season. Typically, we see the most high-profile free agents agree to contracts during this window.
March 13, 2024 - 4:00 p.m. - The official end of the legal tampering period and the official start time of the new league and NFL free agency. Also, by this time, NFL teams MUST:
- Exercise any 2024 options they have on a player’s 2023 contract.
- Assign tenders to restricted free agents to retain the Right of First Refusal (explained more thoroughly in the Restricted vs. Unrestricted Free Agent article in this series).
- Be under the 2024 salary cap (record $255.4 million).
This is also the time that trading can resume.
April 19, 2024 - Deadline for restricted free agents to sign offer sheets with another team (explained more thoroughly in the Restricted vs. Unrestricted Free Agent article in this series).
April 24, 2024 - Deadline for NFL teams to exercise their Right of First Refusal to match offer sheets on restricted free agents to retain their players (explained more thoroughly in the Restricted vs. Unrestricted Free Agent article in this series).
May 2, 2024 - Deadline for teams to exercise the fifth-year option for the 2024 season on their first-round selections from the 2020 NFL Draft.
July 15, 2024 - 4:00 p.m. - The deadline for a franchise-tagged player to sign the tag or negotiate a long-term deal with their team. If this deadline passes without the parties agreeing to a long-term contract, the player must play under the franchise tag or hold out. They cannot discuss a long-term deal with the team until next offseason.
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