Breece Hall, Jets
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New York Jets running back Breece Hall trying to make a play during an NFL game against the New England Patriots.
The franchise tag deadline is on Tuesday, March 3.
Before we get there, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport provided an update on the situation with New York Jets running back Breece Hall.
“One of the big topics here in Indianapolis is what does the future hold for Jets star running back Breece Hall. I would say in the immediate future, the most important thing is that he isn’t going anywhere. The Jets do not want to be in the market of letting good players leave the building. Of course, they did all that this season with the significant draft picks and all that, and they set themselves up for the future. Now it’s time to keep those guys,” Rapoport explained during the NFL Network’s coverage of the NFL Combine.
“Expect him to get either the franchise or the transition tag. I’d say more likely [he gets] the transition tag in the coming days unless the Jets are able to lock in Breece Hall on a long-term deal,” Rapoport said.
The Tag Numbers Are Officially Revealed by the NFL
ESPN’s Rich Cimini noted that the franchise tag is worth $14.3 million and the transition tag is worth $11.3 million.
Rapoport said it is more “likely” that the Jets use the transition tag rather than the franchise tag.
The good news is that it is at a cheaper rate. However, the bad news is that the decision would come with inherent risk.
If the Jets place the transition tag on Hall, he would be allowed to sign an offer sheet with another team. The Jets would have the right to match any offer. If they match it, Hall remains with the Jets on that exact contract.
However, if they choose not to match the offer, Hall would join that new team, and the Jets wouldn’t get any form of compensation.
“Once a player is tagged, the two sides have until July 15 to sign a long-term contract or, by NFL rule, the player will play on the one-year deal (or hold out),” ESPN explained.
What Could a Long Term Deal Look Like?
Rapoport mentioned that this is a “strong” free agent class of running backs. During the NFL combine television broadcast, he said they “All should make or challenge $10 million per year.”
If that assessment is true, that could explain why the Jets are leaning toward a transition tag as opposed to a franchise tag.
The transition tag price is just a few shekels ($1.3 million) above that projected price range for the free agent running backs. While a franchise tag would be significantly more than that range ($4.3 million).
The Jets aren’t hurting for cap space this offseason. According to Over The Cap, the Jets have $88.7 million in cap space. That is the third most in the NFL.
The problem is the Jets have a bevy of needs, so that large amount of cap space will disappear very quickly once general manager Darren Mougey starts checking things off the to-do list.
They don’t want to add running back to that list of needs.