The NFL’s free agency period opens Monday with a 52-hour legal tampering period ahead of the official start of the new league year on Wednesday.
Several high-profile players, including quarterbacks Russell Wilson, Sam Darnold and Justin Fields, will be free to sign a contract with a new team.
Here’s an explanation of rules and terms.
What does legal tampering mean?
At 11 a.m. CST on Monday, teams can start negotiating with players who will become unrestricted free agents when their contracts expire at the start of the new league year on 3 p.m. on Wednesday. Players can’t sign with new teams until the league year officially begins. The two-day negotiating period applies only to players who will be unrestricted free agents.
Who are unrestricted free agents?
Any player with four or more accrued seasons — six or more regular-season games on a club’s active/inactive, reserve/injured or reserve/physically unable to perform lists — whose contract has expired becomes an unrestricted free agent and may negotiate and sign with any team.
Who are restricted free agents?
Restricted free agents are players with three accrued seasons who have received a qualifying offer when their current deals expire on Wednesday.
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What is a franchise tag?
Each team can designate one potential free agent a franchise player. Only Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins and Chiefs guard Trey Smith received the tag before the March 4 deadline.
An exclusive franchise player is not free to sign with another club and is offered the greater of the average of the top five salaries at the player’s position for the current year as of the end of the restricted free agent signing period on April 18; or the amount of the required tender for a non-exclusive franchise player.
A non-exclusive franchise player can sign with another team, but that club will owe his previous team two first-round draft picks. All the players tagged this year are non-exclusive.
A team has to sign a franchise player by Nov. 11.
What is a transition tag?
The transition tag is a one-year offer for the average of top 10 salaries at the position. It guarantees the original club the right of first refusal to match any offer the player might receive from another team.
The tagging team is awarded no compensation if it chooses not to match a deal. No player received the transition tag this year.
Teams can decide to withdraw franchise and transition tags and the player automatically becomes an unrestricted free agent.
What is the salary cap for 2025?
The salary cap is $279.2 million per club, up from $255.4 million last year. Teams must be under the salary cap by 3 p.m. on Wednesday.
What is salary cap rollover?
A team may carry over salary cap space from one league year to the following league year by submitting notice to the NFL prior to 3 p.m. on the day following the team’s final regular-season game. A team can carry over 100% of its remaining 2024 room to its adjusted salary cap for 2025.