Skip to content

Jets' Marshall: Franchise tag must be abolished

Rich Schultz / Getty Images Sport / Getty

New York Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall believes the time has come for the NFL to kill off one of the strongest weapons teams have when it comes to player retention:

It's an annual occurrence for players assigned the franchise tag - which prevents them from hitting free agency - to embark on messy long-term contract negotiations with their teams.

At the moment, Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller and New York Jets defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson, among others, are battling their teams for what they feel is fair pay and long-term security - without the leverage of threatening to leave for another team.

Introduced in 1993, the franchise tag was intended to prevent the best players in football from abandoning small-market teams. Whether it has outlived its usefulness is up for debate, but the tag certainly seems to inhibit free-market economics and depress top-end salaries because it prevents the league's biggest stars from hitting free agency at the peak of their careers.

Despite the tag coming with a guaranteed salary near the top of the market at each position, the one-year term of the tag leaves players vulnerable to damaging their long-term earning potential if they suffer a serious injury.

Marshall isn't the first player to speak out against the tag, and he surely won't be the last.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox