The deadline for NFL teams to use the franchise tag is at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday. That means it’s crunch time for the New England Patriots, if they’re considering using the tag on one of their pending free agents.
There are truly only two realistic options for the Patriots to consider: offensive tackle Mike Onwenu or safety Kyle Dugger.
Neither choice would be cheap.
Tagging Onwenu would cost the team $20.9 million for a guaranteed one-year contract, while keeping Dugger on such a deal would be $17.