The league’s franchise tag window opens and Golladay is the team’s only logical candidate for the designation.
After navigating the top item on the franchise’s offseason check list — getting the best return package in exchange for quarterback Matthew Stafford — Detroit Lions rookie general manager Brad Holmes faces his next big decision starting Tuesday, figuring out what to do with impending free-agent wide receiver Kenny Golladay. That’s when the league’s franchise tag window opens and Golladay is the team’s only logical candidate for the designation. But the logistics of going that route present some financial hurdles. The non-exclusive franchise tag, the most commonly used version, is a one-year contract that pays the player the average of the top-five, highest-paid at their position or 120% more than their previous season’s salary, whichever is greater. In Golladay’s case, the projected cost would be more than $16 million. And even though the league hasn’t yet set the salary cap for the 2021 season, it’s already clear the Lions won’t have that kind of space. Based on current projections, the team already is over budget following the Stafford trade, and will need to clear room via contract restructures, cuts or a combination of the two.
