Las Vegas has path to Sam Darnold if it wants it
With free agency looming, the NFL’s deadline for teams to give players the franchise tag (essentially taking them off the market) passed Tuesday afternoon.
It was an unusually slow year for franchise tags as only two players, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins and Kansas City Chiefs guard Trey Smith, were given the tag.
Every other pending free agent will be able to agree to terms with new teams starting Monday if they don’t sign extensions before then.
The Las Vegas Raiders reportedly are expected to show interest in Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold — along with free-agent quarterbacks Justin Fields and Russell Wilson of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Darnold is set to hit the open market because he wasn’t franchise tagged. Still, the Vikings are reportedly interested in keeping him.
The Raiders have several key free agents, including cornerback Nate Hobbs, linebackers Robert Spillane and Divine Deablo, safeties Tre’von Moehrig and Marucs Epps and defensive end Malcolm Koonce. As expected, none of them were given the franchise tag.
The Raiders, who are projected to have the second most salary-cap room in the league, are expected to try to sign several of these free agents prior to Monday as Tuesday’s franchise-tag deadline takes teams close to the open market.