NFL teams have until March 7 to decide which player they want to eventually place their franchise tag on. For Washington, it will be Daron Payne.
On Tuesday, the Commanders announced they tagged the defensive tackle who had 11.5 sacks in 2022.
If he plays under this tag, Payne will therefore receive $ 18.937 million for the 2023 campaign. But he and his team still have until July 17 to negotiate a long-term contract that would replace the franchise tag. According to ESPN, negotiations have already begun.
The tag on Payne is non-exclusive, which means other teams will be able to negotiate with him during free agency. Except that if he signs elsewhere, the Commanders will have the option of matching the offer to keep him. And if he leaves, the team that signs him will have to give Washington two first-round draft picks. Suffice to say that the chances of seeing him slip away are slim.
Selected in 13th position in the 2018 Draft, Payne has been fairly consistent over his first four seasons, always with between 2 and 5 sacks per campaign. But he exploded last year with 11.5 takedowns from the opposing quarterback. One of his strengths is also that he has only missed one game in five years.
