Beginning today, NFL teams can place the franchise tag on one of their soon-to-be unrestricted free agents.
The Carolina Panthers have seldom used the unpopular tag in the past, but, as we reported near the end of last season, there's a pretty good chance they could do so this year with offensive tackle Jordan Gross. Carolina's goal is to work out a long-term deal with Gross before it gets to that, but time is running out. The free agency signing period begins Feb. 29. The Panthers have until Feb. 21 to use the tag on Gross. I would suspect they would wait unitl the final day before using the tag.
If Gross were to sign the one-year offer he would make $7.455 million this year, which is the average salary cap figure of the top five highest-paid offensive linemen for 2007. Not bad money, but obviously he would command a much larger signing bonus (which is all guaranteed money) if he hit the free agent market. The franchise tag would basically work as a holding device for Carolina until they can re-sign Gross. Even after they use the franchise tag, the Panthers can continue to negotiate a long-term deal with Gross' agent Ethan Lock. My guess is a long-term deal will get done before the start of the season. When he does eventually sign, Gross is expected to command more than $7 million per season.
Either way, two things are pretty certain -- 1. Gross isn't going anywhere, and 2. he's going to be a very rich man very soon.
The bigger question, as we've said before, is what happens to Carolina's other starting offensive tackle Travelle Wharton. My guess is Wharton will explore the free agent market with Carolina's hope being -- although there are no guarantees -- that he'll give the team a chance to match any offer from another team before signing on the dotted line.
Again, this should be just part of a very intriguing off-season.
WHAT ABOUT CUTS: As for some fans who are wondering when the Panthers will cut some players, you should start seeing some moves beginning on Monday NFL waiver wire restarts.
David Carr is likely to be among the cuts, but there's a chance the Panthers could wait until after June 1 to cut Dan Morgan so as to spread out the remainder of his prorated signing bonus over the next two seasons instead of swallowing the entire figure this year.
Although running back DeShaun Foster has a high salary cap figure, I have a hard time believing the team will cut him. He's well-liked by GM Marty Hurney and coach John Fox. The Panthers could always look to trade Foster at a later date if they find another running back, perhaps one that is more of a power runner. Among those out there are Michael Turner of San Diego and Derrick Ward of the New York Giants.
Mike Wahle is another player who could become a victim of the salary cap.