What's all this talk of Free Agency?

So with free agency starting tomorrow I thought I would post about what it is, and a few of the things you might here about over the next few weeks.

I'll start by stating the obvious, Free agency is the time period when teams can approach players to sign them to their team/franchise. In the NFL you cannot attempt to sign any player who is under contract with another team, however you can offer a trade. (I'll be talking about trades and the Draft in upcoming weeks)

There are a few different types of free agents and I'll do my best to explain the differences. The two main categories for free agents are Restricted and Unrestricted.


Restricted free agents (RFA)
A restricted free agent is a player who's contract has expired but has not played in the NFL for more then 3 seasons.
Upon entering free agency a restricted free agent can talk to any team he likes to try sign a new contract, if he chooses to accept an offer from another team his original team will have first refusal to match that offer and retain the player. If his original team chooses not to match the offer they will receive a compensatory pick in the draft to replace this lost player. Players can sign a tender agreement an example of this can be seen below.

The most high profile restricted free agent is Mike Wallace. he is currently a Wide Receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He has signed a first round tender agreement. this means if a team wants to sign Wallace they would have to give Pittsburgh a first round draft pick in this years draft. If no one offers Wallace a contract he will be paid the corresponding tender salary for the following season, he will then become an Unrestricted free agent the following year.

Unrestricted free agents
An unrestricted free agent is a lot easier to explain, it is quite simply a player who has played in the NFL for 4 or more years who's contract has expired. This leaves him free to sign with any team he chooses without any 'restrictions.'
There are always very high valued unrestricted free agents every season, teams will often enter bidding wars and try to out shine other teams in order to get the best players available to sign for their franchise. Older veteran players can often be persuaded with one last big contract and chase the money or they may try to join a team who is destined for a super bowl run in a last attempt to get a Super Bowl ring.


The top Free Agents this year, and some names you may hear about over the next few days and weeks are:

 Peyton Manning - Quarterback- Peyton has been an elite QB for over a decade for the Indianapolis colts, he had a season ending injury last year forcing him to have neck surgery putting his NFL career in doubt. He was due a massive pay check this year of $28million so the colts were forced to cut ties with there beloved QB. The start of a great team is a great QB and so there will be a mad rush by coaches and general managers to try and get Peyton to their franchises. Teams in the running who need a QB are Denver, Arizona and Miami. so watch this space.

Mario Williams- Defensive End/Outside Linebacker- Mario Williams was picked as the number 1 draft choice in 2006 and is one of the best players in the NFL at his position, he was injured last season but seems to of fully recovered. He will have a number of teams desperate for him to sign with them and he would make an immediate impact on any defence. Look to see Atlanta or Seattle try to sign Williams and an outside chance is Jacksonville.

Vincent Jackson- Wide Receiver, VJ is an elite player at his position. His size and speed makes him a threat on offence and a big target for a QB to throw him the ball. However there are plenty of receivers for teams to chase this year in free agency and a few more names who you may come across are
Reggie Wayne- Wide Receiver, don't be surprised to see Wayne join the same team as his old QB Peyton Manning, the two of them have been ripping defences apart for years.
Plaxico Burress- Wide Receiver, he's had problems off the field and with his attitude in the past but he's a big play guy and a top receiver. A few teams will be in the hunt for Burress like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh but there isn't to much buzz about where he might end up yet.
Randy Moss- Wide Receiver, Moss is coming out of retirement for another shot at the NFL and has attracted some good teams who want his services. He has already worked out for the Saints and is rumoured to be working out at San Fran this week. He's a shoe in for the Hall of fame once he has officially retired its just whether he's lost a step in his year away from the game. Definitely worth a gamble for any team.


The final term you will see being used a lot in the NFL at the moment is the franchise tag. A team may franchise tag one player at the end of every season. It is often used on a teams best player who is at the end of there contract on on the verge of becoming a free agent, the franchise tag means the player is obliged to stay with that team for another year and gets paid the average salary of the top 5 players in that position, a franchise tag is normally the first stepping stone to offering that player a new long term contract.

I hope that you have enjoyed today's entry and I have helped you learn a few things about the NFL. Tomorrow Free Agency starts and I will be updating my blog regularly with any developments and signings of free agents. Please comment below and let me know if you would like me to write about anything else, and then hit the follow button on the right for updates throughout Free Agency!