How to Remove a Franchise Tag

The franchise tag is what National Football League teams use when offering one player on a team a large sum of money relative to the position he plays. This sum always equates to the bottom average, or more, of the top five highest paid players at his position. To assign the franchise tag, a team must make a formal contract offer to the player. Removing a franchise tag is as easy as designating one.

Instructions

    • 1

      Contact the player's agent during the 15-day period beginning just after the end of the previous season, usually from early to late February. This is the job of the front office and the team's legal representatives. There are two types of franchise player designations; "exclusive" and "non-exclusive." The team assigns one of these designations to the player.

    • 2

      Offer the player a contract appropriate to whether he is designated an "exclusive" or "non-exclusive" franchise player. The exclusive player will be offered the highest of three options: a one-year contract equal to no less than the top five salaries at the player's position at the end of the restricted free agent's signing date, a 20 percent raise of his salary for the previous season, or the top five average at the player's position for last season, whichever of the three is higher. No other team can negotiate with the player once he has been given the exclusive franchise tag. The non-exclusive franchise player is offered the average of the top five salaries at his position or a 20 percent raise of the previous season's salary. The non-exclusive franchise player has the right to negotiate with other teams during this time period. The player's current team has the right to match any offer from any other team, or accept two first-round draft picks if the team chooses not to match the offer.

    • 3

      Negotiate with the player while he is under the "exclusive" or "non-exclusive" franchise tag. Teams have until late February to mid-July to sign the player to a multi-year contract. The point of the franchise tag, for negotiating purposes, is to assign a minimum monetary value to a player. Players with the exclusive tag are enticed to sign a multi-year deal. Non-exclusive players often test the market, allowing the player's current team to determine market value.

    • 4

      Remove the franchise tag by notifying the player's agent that the team is officially rescinding the franchise tag. This usually means that contract negotiations have broken down. The player formerly designated as the franchise tag player becomes an unrestricted free agent, allowing him to shop his services to the highest bidder.

    • 5

      Notify the NFL commissioner that the franchise tag contract offer to a player has been rescinded. The league maintains an accounting of the salaries of all the players on a team's roster.