What Is the NFL Franchise Tag and How Does It Work?

The franchise tag is one of the NFL’s most important offseason tools. It gives a team a way to keep a key free agent from reaching the open market by placing a one-year tender on him before free agency begins.

In simple terms, the tag buys the team more time. It can keep negotiating a long-term extension, hold onto a star player for one more season, or preserve leverage if trade talks develop. A team can use only one franchise or transition tag in a league year, so clubs usually reserve it for premium players.

#How the franchise tag works

When a player is tagged, he is tied to his current team under a one-year contract offer. That does not automatically end contract talks. The player and team can still work on a long-term deal after the tag is applied.

For the 2026 league year, teams and tagged players can agree to a multi-year extension until July 15, 2026. If no extension is signed by that deadline, the player can only play under a one-year deal for that season unless he chooses not to report.

There is another important deadline later in the year as well. A tagged player must sign his tender by the Tuesday after Week 10 to be eligible to play that season. If a team wants to trade a tagged player, he must sign the tender first.

#The three types of NFL tags

There are three versions of the tag, and each one gives the team a different level of control.

#Non-exclusive franchise tag

This is the tag fans hear about most often.

A player on the non-exclusive tag can negotiate with other teams and sign an offer sheet. His original team then gets the right to match that deal. If the team declines to match, it receives two first-round picks as compensation.

That combination of control and protection is why the non-exclusive tag is the most common version.

#Exclusive franchise tag

The exclusive tag gives the team the strongest hold on the player.

A player on the exclusive tag cannot negotiate with other teams at all. He is effectively locked to his current club for that one-year window unless the two sides reach a longer agreement or work out a trade after the tender is signed.

Because it removes the player’s ability to shop the market, it is usually the most restrictive version of the tag.

#Transition tag

The transition tag is the lightest version of the three.

A transition-tagged player can negotiate with other teams, and his original team still gets the right to match any offer. The difference is what happens if the original team walks away. Unlike the non-exclusive franchise tag, there is no draft-pick compensation.

That makes the transition tag cheaper, but it also gives the team less protection.

#How franchise tag salary is calculated

Tag value is not the same at every position. Quarterbacks, edge rushers, wide receivers, and left tackles all operate in different salary markets, so each tag number is different.

Here is the quick version of how each tag is calculated:

• Non-exclusive franchise tag: the greater of the cap-percentage average for the top five salaries at the player’s position or 120% of the player’s prior-year salary.
• Exclusive franchise tag: the greater of the average of the five largest prior-year salaries at the player’s position at the end of the restricted free agent period or the non-exclusive tag amount.
• Transition tag: the greater of the cap-percentage average for the top 10 salaries at the player’s position or 120% of the player’s prior-year salary.

That 120% rule matters. It prevents a team from repeatedly tagging a player at an artificially low number if his previous salary was already high.

#Can a team tag the same player more than once?

Yes, but it gets expensive fast.

If a player receives the franchise tag a second time, he must receive at least a 120% raise over his previous tag salary, unless the current tag number for his position is even higher. A third tag becomes far more punitive. At that point, the player is entitled to the greatest of three figures: the quarterback tag, 120% of the average of the top five prior-year salaries at his position, or 144% of his second tag salary.

That is why repeat tags are rare. Teams usually reach a long-term extension, trade the player, or let him walk before things get that far.

#Why teams use the franchise tag

The tag is not just about keeping a good player off the market. It also gives teams flexibility.

A club can use the tag to:

• prevent an immediate free-agent departure
• extend negotiations without losing control
• buy time to work through cap decisions
• keep trade leverage over a high-value player

From the player side, the tag can be frustrating because it offers less long-term security and shifts more injury risk onto a single season.

#Bottom line

The NFL franchise tag is a one-year control mechanism that helps teams keep elite free agents from leaving too quickly. The non-exclusive tag allows outside negotiation with draft-pick compensation attached, the exclusive tag shuts the market off completely, and the transition tag gives the original team a matching right without compensation.

For teams, it is leverage. For players, it is often a waiting game. And every offseason, it becomes one of the league’s biggest pressure points before free agency opens.