Most players aren't happy about getting a franchise player designation because it can hinder their ability to gain long term security. The tag is e sentially a high-salaried, one-year "prove it" deal, where players incur the risk of serious injury and poor performance again after already playing out their contracts when an agreement on a long-term deal can't be reached. It is also a powerful management tool that prevents players from receiving fair market value and generally depre ses salaries. and signed long-term deals as franchise players, averaging $14 million per year with $43.5 million to $45 million in guarantees. These contracts may have otherwise eclipsed 's deal, which sets the standard for wide receivers by averaging slightly more than $16.2 million per year and containing $53.5 million in guarantees, if other teams with an abundance of salary cap room and a glaring need for a wide receiver, such as the David Long Jr. Jersey , had been able to bid on their services. In turn, and could have leveraged these contracts into better deals for themselves. Jones and Green's deals average $14.25 million ($47 million in guarantees) and $15 million per year, respectively. The bigger contracts of the four wide receivers would have trickled down to other players at the position.Types of Franchise TagsNFL teams can retain the rights to one of its impending free agents in 2016 with the use of a non-exclusive or an exclusive franchise tag during a two week period from February 16 to March 1.The 2011 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) changed how non-exclusive franchise tags are determined. Since its inception in 1993, a franchise tag number had been an average of the five largest salaries in the prior year at a player's position or 120 percent of the prior year's salary of the player, whichever was greater. For franchise tag purposes, salary means a player's salary cap number, excluding workout bonuses. Those two provisions remain intact, but the formula component is now calculated over a five-year period that's tied to a percentage of the overall salary cap. More specifically, the number for each position is determined by taking the sum of the non-exclusive franchise tags as determined by the original methodology for the previous five seasons and dividing by the sum of the salary caps for the previous five seasons. The resulting percentage, which is known as the Cap Percentage Average in the CBA, is then multiplied by the actual salary cap for the upcoming league year.This non-exclusive tag allows a player to negotiate with other NFL teams, but if he signs Deacon Jones Jersey an offer sheet with another club, his team has five days to match the offer. If the offer is not matched, his team will receive two first-round picks as compensation from the signing team.Under the exclusive franchise tag, a player will receive a one-year offer from his team that is the greater of 120 percent of his prior year's salary or the average of the top five salaries at his position once the restricted free agent signing period of the current year has ended (April 22 for 2016). A player cannot negotiate with other teams with the exclusive franchise tag. Teams also have the option to use a transition tag instead of a franchise tag. The transition tag operates similarly to the non-exclusive franchise tag, except it is based on the average of the top ten salaries at a player's position. Teams have the same matching rights as with franchise tags but do not receive any draft choice compensation.The transition tag had e sentially become obsolete, but it's starting to make a comeback. In 2014, the and became the first teams to use it since 2008. The followed suit this year.2016 Franchise Tag ProjectionsThe chart below contains an early look at the 2016 franchise tags. I keep track of the salary data nece sary to do the calculations under the franchise tag formula. I recently confirmed with my NFL sources the 2015 data. The franchise tags are preliminary because the numbers can't be finalized until the 2016 salary cap is set in late February or early March. $154 million is being used for the 2016 salary cap because it Jack Youngblood Jersey is a 7.48 percent increase, which is consistent with the 8.13 percent and 7.73 percent growth in the salary cap in each of the last two years. The 2016 increase will likely be impacted by the delay of the CBA's annual performance based pay to players in 2013 until this upcoming March, according to my NFL sources.Projected franchise tag numbers, 2016PositionCurrentSalary cap percentageProjectedChangeCornerback$13,075,0008.985%$13,838,0005.83%Defensive End$14,813,00010.061%$15,494,0004.6%Defensive Tackle$11,193,0008.68%$13,368,00019.43%Linebacker$13,195,0009.176%$14,131,0007.09%Offensive Line$12,943,0008.882%$13,678,0005.68%Punter/Kicker$4,126,0002.944%$4,534,0009.89%Quarterback$18,544,00012.823%$19,748,0006.49%Running Back$10,951,0007.708%$11,871,0008.4%Safety$9,618,0006.959%$10,717,00011.43%Tight End$8,347,0005.879%$9,053,0008.46%Wide Receiver$12,823,0009.434%$14,527,00013.29%Note: Projections a sume 2016 salary cap is $154 million.The NFLPA is gaining a measure of vindication for the criticism received for agreeing to change the calculation of the non-exclusive franchise designations. Franchise players are going to be better off with the new methodology than under old methodology. The franchise tag numbers will be 9.54 percent higher collectively under the new formula if the 2016 salary cap is set at $154 million.The good thing for players is that Allen Robinson Jersey teams are becoming more judicious Van Jefferson Jersey in using the franchise player designation as it gets more cost prohibitive. A record 21 players were franchised in 2012, including six kickers and punters, in the first year with the new method of calculation when there was almost a 20 percent drop in the franchise tags from 2011. Eight players received the designation in 2013. Four franchise tags were used in 2014 and there were five franchise-tagged players this year. It will be a surprise if the franchise safety . His franchise tag number will be $12.12 million, which is based on 120 percent of his 2015 cap number. Here are some other teams that could elect to use the franchise tag this offseason.2016 Franchise Tag Candidates : OLB The three-time All-Pro probably views the six-year, $101 million contract, which included $52.5 million in guarantees, the gave over the summer as his salary floor. Another important financial benchmark may be the $60 million in guarantees, a record for a defensive player, that received from the Buffalo Bills in a contract extension as the regular season approached. The average yearly salary of Houston's deal is 27.6 percent greater than his franchise tag. If the Broncos do the same with Miller, his multi-year deal will be in the neighborhood of $18 million per year. : DE The Jets unsucce sfully tried to sign Wilkerson to a long-term deal before he ended negotiatio
