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Agent’s Take: Everything you need to know about franchise and transition tags with NFL free agency on horizon
NFL free agency is close to kicking off, but some players won’t be allowed to participate; Joel Corry explains the nuances of the tagging system
By
Joel Corry
Feb 18, 2026
at
1:26 pm ET
•
12 min read
Players whose contracts are expiring with the requisite years of service typically look forward to finding out their true market value in free agency. There are rules in place that can stop a select few NFL players from hitting the open market each year. That isn’t the case in MLB and the NBA.
Here are answers to the most frequently asked questions about the mechanisms that can prevent football players from becoming free agents.
Teams can keep impending restricted (players with three accrued seasons or years of service) or unrestricted free agents (players with four or more accrued seasons) from testing the open market with use of franchise or transition designations. Each team can designate one of its impending free agents as a franchise or transition player. The franchise designation can be special or non-special.
There is a 15-day window beginning on the 22nd day before the start of the upcoming league year to use the designations. This year, the 22nd day is Feb. 17. The designation period ends at 4 p.m. ET on the eighth day before the start of the upcoming league year, which is March 3.
Prior to the 2011 NFL collective bargaining agreement, non-special franchise tags had been an average of the five largest salaries in the prior year at a player’s position or 120% of the prior year’s salary of the player, whichever was greater. For franchise tag purposes, salary means a player’s salary cap number, excluding workout bonuses and most other performance bonuses.
The 120% and five largest salaries provisions have remained intact but the formula component is now calculated over a five-year period that’s tied to a percentage of the overall salary cap. More specifically, the number for each position is derived by taking the sum of the non-special franchise tags as determined by the original methodology for the previous five seasons (2021 through 2025) and dividing by the sum of the actual NFL salary cap amount for the previous five seasons (2021 through 2025). The resulting percentage, which is known as the Cap Percentage Average in the CBA, is then multiplied by the actual salary cap for the upcoming league year (2026).
The 2026 salary cap hasn’t been set. The NFL informed the 32 teams at the end of January that the 2026 salary cap is projected to be between $301.2 million and $305.7 million.
Under the special franchise tag, a player will receive a one-year offer from his team that is the greater of the average of the current top five salaries (salary cap numbers with some minor adjustments) at his position once the restricted free agent signing period of the actual league year has ended (April 17 for 2026) or 120% of his prior year’s salary. The non-special number is initially used as placeholder and adjusted upwards if the special calculation dictates once restricted free agency ends. In no circumstance will the special franchise tag be less than the non-special franchise tag.
The special franchise tag typically is given to quarterbacks although that wasn’t the case with Lamar Jackson in 2023. Before Jackson, the special tag had been used the last three times quarterbacks were designated as franchise players.
The non-special tag allows a player to negotiate with other NFL teams when the free agent signing period begins on March 11 but if he signs an offer sheet with another club, his team has five days to match the offer. If the offer is not matched, his team will receive two first-round picks as compensation from the signing team. A player under an special franchise tag cannot negotiate with other teams. It is a “closed” negotiation.
The transition tag is used significantly less than the franchise tag. It is based on the average of the top 10 salaries at a player’s position using the same methodology as non-special franchise tag calculations. The 120% provision also applies. Teams have the same right of first refusal as with franchise tags but do not receive any draft choice compensation for declining to match an offer sheet. As with the non-special franchise tag, transition players can start negotiating with other teams at the beginning of the free agent signing period.
The exact cost for each position can’t be determined since the 2026 salary cap isn’t set. The figures are a percentage of the salary cap. The chart below contains the low end and the high end of the projected range for the franchise tag number at each position.
| Position | Low Projection | High Projection |
|---|---|---|
|
Cornerback |
$21,159,000 |
$21,475,000 |
|
Defensive end |
$24,433,000 |
$24,798,000 |
|
Defensive tackle |
$27,126,000 |
$27,531,000 |
|
Kicker/Punter |
$6,650,000 |
$6,750,000 |
|
Linebacker |
$26,864,000 |
$27,265,000 |
|
Offensive line |
$25,774,000 |
$26,159,000 |
|
Quarterback |
$43,894,000 |
$44,500,000 |
|
Running back |
$14,295,000 |
$14,509,000 |
|
Safety |
$20,150,000 |
$20,451,000 |
|
Tight end |
$15,045,000 |
$15,270,000 |
|
Wide receiver |
$27,298,000 |
$27,706,000 |
The same thing was done for the transition tags as with the franchise tags above. The following chart contains the projected range for transition numbers.
| Position | Low Projection | High Projection |
|---|---|---|
|
Cornerback |
$18,120,000 |
$18,391,000 |
|
Defensive end |
$21,512,000 |
$21,833,000 |
|
Defensive tackle |
$22,521,000 |
$22,857,000 |
|
Kicker/Punter |
$6,006,000 |
$6,096,000 |
|
Linebacker |
$21,924,000 |
$22,252,000 |
|
Offensive line |
$23,391,000 |
$23,741,000 |
|
Quarterback |
$37,834,000 |
$38,399,000 |
|
Running back |
$11,322,000 |
$11,491,000 |
|
Safety |
$16,012,000 |
$16,251,000 |
|
Tight end |
$12,687,000 |
$12,876,000 |
|
Wide receiver |
$23,852,000 |
$24,208,000 |
A franchise or transition tag counts against a team’s salary cap as soon as the designation is made. It doesn’t matter whether a player has signed his franchise or transition tender. Once signed, the franchise or transition tender becomes a fully guaranteed one-year contract.
Yes. Franchise and transition players can be traded. However, players with unsigned tenders can’t be traded until signed. A franchise or transition player essentially has a de facto no-trade clause or veto power on being dealt.
Trading a player after he has been given one of the designations occurred twice in 2024. After the Carolina Panthers placed a $24.007 million franchise tag on edge rusher Brian Burns, he was traded to the New York Giants for a 2024 second-round pick and a 2025 fifth-round pick in March 2024. There was also a swap of 2024 fifth-round picks. Burns received a five-year, $141 million contract worth up to $150 million incentives and salary escalators in connection with the trade. At $28.2 million per year, Burns became the NFL’s second-highest-paid edge rusher. The deal contains $87 million in guarantees, of which $76 million was fully guaranteed at signing.
The Kansas City Chiefs put a $19.802 million franchise tag on cornerback L’Jarius Sneed with the intent of trading him. The Tennessee Titans acquired Sneed from the Chiefs in March 2024 for a 2025 third-round pick with the teams also swapping 2024 seventh-round picks. Sneed signed a four-year, $76.4 million contract, averaging $19.1 million per year with $55 million of guarantees, in the process.
The franchise tag has been used 16 times over the last three years (2023-2025). Twelve of the 16 times (75%) during this time frame a long-term deal was signed while under the designation.
Teams rarely apply the transition tag. The New England Patriots placed the designation on safety Kyle Dugger in 2024. The Patriots gave Dugger a four-year, $58 million deal that April, averaging $14.5 million per year with $32.5 million in guarantees, where $29.75 million was fully guaranteed at signing. Prior to Dugger, the transition tag hadn’t been used since 2020 by the Arizona Cardinals with running back Kenyan Drake.
There wasn’t a team that used a designation in each of these years. The Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Jacksonville Jaguars and Kansas City Chiefs have used the franchise tag twice during this three-year period.
Wide receiver Tee Higgins is the only player to be tagged twice. He played the 2024 season under a $21.816 million franchise tag. It cost the Bengals $26,179,200 to use the designation on Higgins again in 2025 because of the 120% of prior year’s salary provisions. Higgins became the NFL’s highest-paid second wide receiver at $28.75 million per year last March. He received a four-year, $115 million deal worth to up $121.8 million through incentives.
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The Dallas Cowboys have already indicated that wide receiver George Pickens will get a franchise tag absent a new deal before the March 3 deadline. Pickens had 93 receptions, 1,429 receiving yards and nine receiving touchdowns, all career highs, while averaging 15.4 yards per catch. The 2022 second-round pick ranked in the NFL’s top 10 in each of these categories last season. Pickens was named to the Pro Bowl and earned second-team All-Pro honors both for the first time in his career because of his efforts.
Tight end Kyle Pitts is coming off his best season since he was a rookie in 2021. Pitts was second in the NFL among tight ends with a career-high 88 receptions and 928 receiving yards. Pitts was selected to his second Pro Bowl and was named a second-team All-Pro in 2025.
Ideally, the Indianapolis Colts will quickly get a deal done with quarterback Daniel Jones so a decision doesn’t have to be made on designating him as a franchise or transition player. Jones would clearly be the top quarterback available on the open market despite the torn his right Achilles he suffered in a Week 14 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Colts using a franchise tag on wide receiver Alec Pierce can’t be ruled out regardless of what happens with Jones. Pierce has led the NFL in yards per catch in each of the last two seasons with 22.3 in 2024 and 21.3 in 2025. The Colts made sure wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. didn’t hit the open market in 2024. He got a $21.816 million franchise tag before signing a three-year, $70 million deal, averaging $23,333,333 per year with $46 million in guarantees, where $41 million was fully guaranteed at signing.
Either tag could be in play for New York Jets running back Breece Hall. He had a career best 1,065 rushing yards last season. It was the first time a Jets running back hit the 1,000 rushing yard mark since Chris Ivory in 2015.
Conventional wisdom suggests defensive end Trey Hendrickson and the Cincinnati Bengals are headed for a divorce after acrimonious 2025 negotiations. Hendrickson received a $13 million raise to his 2025 salary where his 2025 cap number increased to $25,166,668 as a compromise to end his hold in. Given the way the 120% of prior year’s salary provisions operate for franchise tags, it will cost the Bengals $30.2 million to use the designation on Hendrickson. The Bengals could follow in the footsteps of the Kansas City Chiefs with Sneed where a franchise tag is used to trade Hendrickson.
Don’t expect the Baltimore Ravens to use a franchise tag on center Tyler Linderbaum. The Ravens declined a $23.402 million fifth year option for 2026 with Linderbaum, which is less than his 2026 franchise tag. The Super Bowl LX MVP also appears to be headed towards the open market. The Seattle Seahawks reportedly do not intend to use a designation on running back Kenneth Walker III.
Franchise players have until 4 p.m. ET on July 15 to sign multiyear contracts. After this deadline passes, players with franchise tags are prohibited from signing long-term deals until the end of the 2026 regular season on Jan. 10, 2027.
Running back Josh Jacobs is the only franchise player in NFL history to get a one-year deal with a base value more than his tag amount. He didn’t sign a one-year deal for $11.791 million, which is $1.7 million above his $10.091 franchise tag, until the latter part of August 2023.
The signing period for transition players with outstanding tenders ends on July 22 at 4 p.m. ET. After this date, a player’s prior team has special negotiating rights.
Yes. The player immediately becomes an unrestricted free agent if the tender is withdrawn after the start of the league year. He becomes unrestricted at the same time as everyone else with an expiring contract (March 11 for 2026) when the tender is rescinded before the start of the upcoming league year.
Franchise tenders have been revoked on four occasions. The last revocation was Josh Norman’s by the Carolina Panthers in 2016 days before the NFL Draft. He promptly signed a long-term deal with the Washington Commanders making him the NFL’s highest-paid cornerback.
No. A player cannot become an unrestricted free agent by refusing a franchise or transition tag. A player doesn’t have to sign his franchise or transition tender though.
One thing a player can do is negotiate a clause into his contract that prohibits his team from designating him as a franchise or transition player when his deal ends. Jackson’s and Dak Prescott’s respective contracts with the Baltimore Ravens and Dallas Cowboys have such a clause. The San Francisco 49ers are precluded from designating wide receiver Jauan Jennings as a franchise or transition player. The reworked contract Jennings signed as the start of the 2025 regular season was approaching included $3 million in incentives and a clause preventing either tag.
A lot of unsigned franchise and transition players skip voluntary and mandatory team offseason activities while they aren’t under contract to try to pressure the team into meeting their financial demands. A designated player can’t participate in offseason workouts anyway without signing a player contract or a participation agreement for the tendered amount protecting him in case of an injury. Participation agreements are rarely signed.
Franchise and transition players without an NFL player contract can’t be fined for missing the mandatory June minicamp or training camp. Their attendance isn’t required because of the absence of a signed contract. Unsigned players aren’t withholding services they are contractually obligated to perform.
Of course, a player extending his absence into the regular season won’t get paid while he remains unsigned. His team gets salary cap relief for each missed regular-season week (1/18th of the player’s tender per week).
It’s rare for a franchise player to sit out a full season. The last time was running back Le’Veon Bell in 2018 after the Pittsburgh Steelers gave him a $14.544 million franchise tender. It was the second straight year Bell had been named a franchise player. Prior to Bell, a player hadn’t sat out a full season in 20 years.
Franchise and transition players must sign by 4 p.m. ET on the Tuesday after Week 10’s games (Nov. 17 in 2026). If still unsigned at this point, the players are prohibited from playing for the remainder of the season.
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