Nobody comes for free in free agency
The term in use these days is “legal tampering.” Doesn’t seem sensible, and some might call it the “cheating period” instead.
Regardless, on Monday, two days before the NFL’s 2021 business year begins, the 32 teams and agents for the players will be making deals. Lots of deals, even if they aren’t official until Wednesday.
“I hate calling it the legal tampering period because that just seems like that’s a debacle of the English language,” Rams general manager Les Snead says. “Legal tampering, and tampering is illegal? But we’ll have to adjust based on that because there’s no guarantee that you can re-sign (players).”
Even at a time when the salary cap has plummeted by $16 million due to lost revenues during the COVID-19-impacted 2020 season, lots of money will be going to the most-prized players.
That likely will include Tampa Bay pass rusher Shaq Barrett; Green Bay All-Pro center Corey Linsley and standout running back Aaron Jones; Detroit wide receiver Kenny Golladay; San Francisco tackle Trent Williams; and Chargers tight end Hunter Henry. No superstars about to break the bank, but plenty of proven talent to help teams improve before turning attention to next month’s draft.
Of course, free agency always is a buyer-beware situation.
“Yeah, we want talented players; but we want a good cohesive unit and guys who fit well together,” Dolphins coach Brian Flores says. “That’s not always 11 stars. It’s almost never that way.
“So we’ve scoured free agency, the draft, and I think we have a pretty good feel for the types of guys we are looking for from a skillset standpoint, but also from a locker room standpoint as people as well . ... That’s an important factor that can’t be overlooked. All of those things play a role.”
Nine players have been given franchise tags: receivers Chris Godwin (Tampa Bay) and Allen Robinson (Chicago); offensive linemen Taylor Moton (Carolina), Cam Robinson (Jacksonville) and All-Pro Brandon Scherff (Washington); safeties Marcus Maye (New York Jets), Marcus Williams (New Orleans) and Justin Simmons (Denver); and defensive tackle Leonard Williams (New York Giants).
Dallas locked up quarterback Dak Prescott with a four-year deal, and J.J. Watt, released this offseason by Houston, signed with Arizona. Those were the biggest names potentially available.
Snead’s Rams didn’t use the tag, which could mean losing solid safety John Johnson or revitalized linebacker Leonard Floyd or center Austin Blythe.
“Strategically, probably philosophically, you’d love to be able to not utilize the franchise tag and work to get something done long term,” Snead says, “just because usually when there’s a franchise tag used, the history of it says it’s very hard to get something done longer term off of that tag.”