The franchise tag market could be DOA in 2025

The annual two-week window or using the franchise tag opens on Tuesday. This year, there might not be a single tag applied.

The two most likely recipients aren't likely to be tagged. Bengals receiver Tee Higgins, who received the franchise tag in 2024 at $21.8 million, would be entitled by rule to a 20-percent raise in 2025. That's a one-year, fully-guaranteed salary of $26.18 million, with an identical cap number.

The Bengals have never tagged a player twice. In fact, no player tagged by the Bengals has stayed with the team beyond the year of the tag.

Only once did a tagged Bengals player sign a long-term deal. It happened in 1999, when receiver Carl Pickens inked a five-year contract in lieu of playing under the tag. The Bengals cut him a year later.

The more likely possibility for Higgins would be a long-term deal. The franchise tag seems like a remote possibility, especially with receiver Ja'Marr Chase angling for $40 million per year, or perhaps more.

There was talk late in the regular season of the Vikings tagging quarterback Sam Darnold. But coach Kevin O'Connell said in a Super Bowl-week visit to PFT Live that Darnold has earned the right to become a free agent. This implies that the team won't be paying Darnold roughly $40 million under the franchise tag for another season in Minnesota.

Beyond those two, there's no obvious, no-brainer candidate. Based on a team-by-team analysis performed by the various folks who cover the various teams for ESPN.com, it's possible that no one will be tagged.

A no-tag offseason wouldn't be unprecedented. But it would be rare. Via Spotrac.com, only one prior season entailed no tags on a league wide basis — 1996.