Unrestricted Free Agent:
An unrestricted free agent is, just as it sounds, unrestricted. They are able to sign with anyone and the previous team has no leverage. The vast majority of free agents are unrestricted. To qualify for unrestricted free agent status, a player must have accrued (played or been on injured reserve for 6+ games) at least 4 seasons.
This player is effectively on the open market and if he is in demand, he can get teams into a bidding war to get the best contract. This is how DE Mario Williams was able to receive a 6 year/$96M contract with the Bills. The Patriots rarely go after the high profile unrestricted free agents. As most teams try to do, the Patriots frequently try and extend their key players before they reach the open market (see: Rob Gronkowski), but that doesn't always work (see: Wes Welker). The only real bargaining tool a front office can use against unrestricted free agency is the franchise tag, which has been placed on Welker this year.
Franchise Tag:
A team is allowed to franchise tag one player a year. This player is given a one-year guaranteed contract whose value depends on the type of tag; exclusive (no other team can give an offer sheet): valued at the average salary of players tagged at a certain position during the past five years, non-exclusive (another team can give an offer but must give up two first round picks): valued at the average of the top five salaries of last season at his position. Most players dislike playing under the franchise tag as they prefer long term security over a single year contract. The only leverage a player has over the franchise tag is holding out during training camp and in extreme cases the beginning of the season. Under the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) significantly heavier fines can be applied to players who attempt to hold out, diminishing their leverage in these situations further.
Welker has signed his franchise tender and although he has made several comments that he is unhappy about the lack of a long term deal, he has attended every mandatory practice and does not plan on missing any time.
Compensatory Picks:
The only compensation a team can receive for having an unrestricted free agent walk in free agency is a "compensatory pick" in the next years draft. These compensatory picks are evaluated after each season before the draft. A total of 32 compensatory pick, ranging from rounds 3 to 7, are given to teams around the league that lost more unrestricted free agents than they gained. The position of the pick is determined by the size of the contract, playing time, and postseason honors of the player that walked. For example, I would expect the Texans to receive multiple picks next season for losing: Mario Williams to the Bills (3rd round), Eric Winston to the Chiefs (5th round), and Mike Brisiel to the Raiders (5th round).
Candidates for the Patriots would be BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Mark Anderson as both of them received larger contracts than their replacements. However, due to the signings of Brandon Lloyd, Steve Gregory, and Jabar Gaffney, I doubt the Patriots will be considered to have a net loss in free agency.
Restricted Free Agent:
A restricted free agent is a free agent with 3 accrued seasons and will frequently be offered a restricted free agent tender from his previous team. The tender is a one year deal whose value dictates what level draft pick must be given to his previous team, should another team sign him. Furthermore, the previous team also has the right of first refusal which allows them to match any offer given to the player within one week. There are three tenders that a team can apply to a player (the values in parentheses are from the 2012 season): first round tender ($2.75M), second round tender ($1.93M), and original round tender ($1.27M).
As an example of how restricted free agency works, I will put forth a scenario many fans were asking for before the draft. Mike Wallace is an elite wide receiver who is entering his prime with a first round tender from the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers do not have a lot of cap space and were actually forced to cut several players to get under the cap before the deadline. Therefore, the Patriots could have given Wallace a large front loaded deal, confident that the Steelers would have been unable to match the offer. If they succeeded, Wallace would sign the deal from the Patriots and the Patriots would give the Steeler their original first round pick (#31 overall in the 2012 draft).
The Patriots have one restricted free agent after this season, Kyle Love. I would not be surprised to see him receiving a second round tender before the start of free agency. If he plays well enough this season, it could bump him up to a first round tender.
Exclusive Rights Free Agent:
An exclusive rights free agent is a free agent with less than 3 accrued seasons. The exclusive rights free agent tender is fairly simple compared to the restricted free variety. The tender is valued at the minimum salary based on the number of accrued seasons and the player is simply not allowed to negotiate with other teams. This tender is incredibly lopsided as the front office clearly has all of the bargaining chips, but these types of free agents are very rare as they are typically undrafted rookies or practice squad players who are coming off of a two year deal and this effectively allows the team to add an extra year to the deal if desired.
Sterling Moore is the sole free agent who qualifies after the 2012 season. If he continues his growth as a serviceable defensive back (he played at both safety and cornerback), I fully expect the Patriots to use this option and then possibly extend him similar to what they did with Kyle Arrington last year and Gary Guyton the year before.
This player is effectively on the open market and if he is in demand, he can get teams into a bidding war to get the best contract. This is how DE Mario Williams was able to receive a 6 year/$96M contract with the Bills. The Patriots rarely go after the high profile unrestricted free agents. As most teams try to do, the Patriots frequently try and extend their key players before they reach the open market (see: Rob Gronkowski), but that doesn't always work (see: Wes Welker). The only real bargaining tool a front office can use against unrestricted free agency is the franchise tag, which has been placed on Welker this year.
Franchise Tag:
A team is allowed to franchise tag one player a year. This player is given a one-year guaranteed contract whose value depends on the type of tag; exclusive (no other team can give an offer sheet): valued at the average salary of players tagged at a certain position during the past five years, non-exclusive (another team can give an offer but must give up two first round picks): valued at the average of the top five salaries of last season at his position. Most players dislike playing under the franchise tag as they prefer long term security over a single year contract. The only leverage a player has over the franchise tag is holding out during training camp and in extreme cases the beginning of the season. Under the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) significantly heavier fines can be applied to players who attempt to hold out, diminishing their leverage in these situations further.
Welker has signed his franchise tender and although he has made several comments that he is unhappy about the lack of a long term deal, he has attended every mandatory practice and does not plan on missing any time.
Compensatory Picks:
The only compensation a team can receive for having an unrestricted free agent walk in free agency is a "compensatory pick" in the next years draft. These compensatory picks are evaluated after each season before the draft. A total of 32 compensatory pick, ranging from rounds 3 to 7, are given to teams around the league that lost more unrestricted free agents than they gained. The position of the pick is determined by the size of the contract, playing time, and postseason honors of the player that walked. For example, I would expect the Texans to receive multiple picks next season for losing: Mario Williams to the Bills (3rd round), Eric Winston to the Chiefs (5th round), and Mike Brisiel to the Raiders (5th round).
Candidates for the Patriots would be BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Mark Anderson as both of them received larger contracts than their replacements. However, due to the signings of Brandon Lloyd, Steve Gregory, and Jabar Gaffney, I doubt the Patriots will be considered to have a net loss in free agency.
Restricted Free Agent:
A restricted free agent is a free agent with 3 accrued seasons and will frequently be offered a restricted free agent tender from his previous team. The tender is a one year deal whose value dictates what level draft pick must be given to his previous team, should another team sign him. Furthermore, the previous team also has the right of first refusal which allows them to match any offer given to the player within one week. There are three tenders that a team can apply to a player (the values in parentheses are from the 2012 season): first round tender ($2.75M), second round tender ($1.93M), and original round tender ($1.27M).
As an example of how restricted free agency works, I will put forth a scenario many fans were asking for before the draft. Mike Wallace is an elite wide receiver who is entering his prime with a first round tender from the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers do not have a lot of cap space and were actually forced to cut several players to get under the cap before the deadline. Therefore, the Patriots could have given Wallace a large front loaded deal, confident that the Steelers would have been unable to match the offer. If they succeeded, Wallace would sign the deal from the Patriots and the Patriots would give the Steeler their original first round pick (#31 overall in the 2012 draft).
The Patriots have one restricted free agent after this season, Kyle Love. I would not be surprised to see him receiving a second round tender before the start of free agency. If he plays well enough this season, it could bump him up to a first round tender.
Exclusive Rights Free Agent:
An exclusive rights free agent is a free agent with less than 3 accrued seasons. The exclusive rights free agent tender is fairly simple compared to the restricted free variety. The tender is valued at the minimum salary based on the number of accrued seasons and the player is simply not allowed to negotiate with other teams. This tender is incredibly lopsided as the front office clearly has all of the bargaining chips, but these types of free agents are very rare as they are typically undrafted rookies or practice squad players who are coming off of a two year deal and this effectively allows the team to add an extra year to the deal if desired.
Sterling Moore is the sole free agent who qualifies after the 2012 season. If he continues his growth as a serviceable defensive back (he played at both safety and cornerback), I fully expect the Patriots to use this option and then possibly extend him similar to what they did with Kyle Arrington last year and Gary Guyton the year before.
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