Best NFL Franchise Tag Decisions

By Ian Taylor on March 2, 2016

March 1, 2016 was the NFL’s franchise tag deadline. Teams had the option to “tag” a player, essentially locking him into a one-year contract paying him the average of the top five paid players at his position.

It’s a useful tool for all teams who don’t want their prized free-agent to hit the open market. Without the extra teams vying for his talents, it can lower the price due to the lack of a bidding war. With 10 players getting slapped with the tag, here are the top five best tag decisions.

1. Eric Berry, S, Kansas City Chiefs

Berry is coming off of a stellar year only months away from surviving cancer. Adding a NFL Comeback Player of the Year award to his resume certainly helped his potential price tag. A good story certainly helps a player going into free agency, and Berry’s was the pinnacle.

However, the Chiefs’ decision to tag him was the best move the team has made since hiring Andy Reid. Berry was ready to be pursued by the Raiders and the Jaguars, who have bucket-loads of money to throw at free agents. The bidding war would have driven out the Chiefs, who have other free agents to worry about. His tag price only came out at about 10 million, which is certainly a lot lower than what he could have made. The Chiefs will definitely re-sign him before the new season, and knowing what his price will be will help out their free agency experience massively.

2. Von Miller, LB, Denver Broncos

When Von Miller won Super Bowl MVP, the Baltimore Ravens sat at home with Vietnam-esque flashbacks of signing Joe Flacco. Miller could have stood up on the podium, Lombardi Trophy in one hand, and a Johnny Manziel money sign in the other. John Elway was delighted with the trophy, but was warming up his shoulder to throw money at Miller.

Von Miller was a member of the vaunted 2011 draft class, and his classmate J.J. Watt gave him a contract to target. Miller is guaranteed at least a $110 million contract, but the Broncos also have to worry about their quarterback of the future, Brock Osweiler. Worst-case scenario is that Miller plays under the tag number, about 16.9 million, and the Broncos re-sign Osweiler, allowing them to worry about Miller’s contract when the time comes.

3. Trumaine Johnson, CB, Los Angeles Rams

As the Rams begin the transition to LA, they also have to worry about their top two cornerbacks becoming free agents. Johnson and 2012 draft classmate Janoris Jenkins created a bit of a tricky situation for the Rams. It’s rare for a team to possibly lose both starting cornerbacks, but the Rams don’t have to worry about that for now.

Tagging Johnson allows the Rams to turn their attention to locking down Jenkins, who wants to be paid like the No. 1 cornerback he is. The flip side to this is that the Rams are now looking at paying two cornerbacks top-tier money. The beauty of the Rams though is that they have the whole “playing in LA” thing to dangle in the faces of free agents.

4. Alshon Jeffrey, WR, Chicago Bears

When the Bears traded Brandon Marshall to the Jets last off-season, it opened the door for Jeffrey to become the No. 1 receiver his talent has shown he can be. He dealt with injuries that limited him to nine games on the season, with only eight starts. He was still able to drop 807 yards, to go with his 2,500 yards in his previous two seasons.

A true No. 1 receiver is a rare commodity on the open market, so the Bears are avoiding a big bidding war for arguably the best receiver in franchise history. 2015 first-round pick Kevin White should be healthy this season, giving the Bears the one-two punch of athleticism that any team would love.

5. Justin Tucker, K, Baltimore Ravens

Let’s get this out of the way, kickers are not only people, but they are vital to teams. This season, Tucker scored 128 of his team’s 328 points. Tucker was also the rare consistent player on a Ravens’ team that got bit by the injury bug hard, and also got smacked in the back of the head by father time.

It is not only incredibly possible, but highly likely that Tucker leaves this off-season as the highest paid kicker in NFL history. Situations like that usually cause players to head to teams with tons of cap room, not the rebuilding Ravens. With the use of the tag, the Ravens don’t have to worry about their best free agent riding off to California for a pay day, and they can turn their attention to restructuring Joe Flacco’s cringe-worthy contract. Good kickers are hard to come by, just ask the Steelers — so the Ravens having one less piece they have to replace makes the whole rebuilding thing a lot easier.

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