LEADING OFF TAG SEASON BEGINS FOR NFL TEAMS

NFL teams can begin using the franchise and transition tag to restrict movement of their soon-to-be free agents. The off-season “tag” window opened Tuesday with clubs applying the US$180 million salary cap and position-specific estimates for transition and franchise decisions. While official figures won’t be released until late March, the estimates being used by NFL teams include a one-year franchise tender of $24.112 million at quarterback down to $4.792 million for kickers and punters. The deadline for teams to use a tag is March 9. Franchise tag tenders are based on the top-five salaries for that position. The transition tag figure is an average of the top-10 salaries at a given position. Each team can use only one tag — franchise or transition — and a player can be tagged up to three times by the same team. Once a team has applied the restrictive tag, it can continue negotiations toward a long-term contract until July 15.