Despite some discussion of delaying the new league year as the coronavirus outbreak shuts down the sports world, the free agency schedule will go on as planned.
After players approved the new CBA on Sunday, the league sent out a memo saying that the start of the new league year on Wednesday at 1 p.m. PT. will not be delayed, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
That means franchise and other tags will be due at 9 a.m. PT on Monday, when free agent negotiations can begin.
According to Schefter, the NFL said that it was the NFLPA that did not allow for the league year to be delayed because no football activity was going to be done — just signing deals and working remotely.
Here’s a quick breakdown of what is ahead this upcoming week:
- Monday, March 16 at 11:59:59 a.m. ET: Franchise/transition tag deadline
- Monday, March 16 at 12 p.m. ET: Legal tampering period opens
- Wednesday, March 18 at 4 p.m. ET: New league year begins and free agency opens.