Von Miller: Franchise tag is 'a league-wide problem' and I won't sign it
The Denver Broncos' Super Bowl MVP linebacker fights back against franchise tag
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1 min read
Franchise tag deadline day is right around the corner, and with it comes the potential for plenty of ugly situations to unfold. On Friday, every team who placed the franchise tag on a player and has yet to reach a long-term agreement with that player will need to agree to terms on a new contract, otherwise that player will be forced to play under a one-year deal or enter a holdout.
The Denver Broncos and Super Bowl MVP Von Miller find themselves at an impasse with deadline day nearing. And according to Miller, there's no way he's going to play under the limited security of the tag, which would pay him roughly $14.1 million.
"No, I'm not gonna play on the franchise tag. It just doesn't make sense in any way," Miller told ESPN, according to Pro Football Talk. And then, Miller broadened his scope, labeling the franchise tag as a "league-wide problem."
"I've never really played for money," Miller said. "It's bigger than that for me. It's a league-wide problem that I feel like I'm in a situation to help out with."
Miller's gripe is that "the franchise tag is inherently unfair to NFL players because it restricts their ability to find out their true market value," as PFT wrote. He's not wrong -- players do end up losing leverage and value once they're tagged -- but that won't help his situation.
Luckily, Miller's chances to land a lucrative, long-term deal are high. CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora gave Miller a 95 percent chance of cashing in before the deadline, while assigning much smaller percentages to other tagged players like Alshon Jeffery and Kirk Cousins. Meanwhile CBS Sports' Joel Corry, a former agent, outlined a fair deal for the team and player, which would involve $45 million fully guaranteed at signing.
The bottom line: Miller is too valuable and the Broncos already let other players walk away in free agency knowing full well they were going to have to pay him in the near future. These kinds of deals usually get done at the last minute -- Dez Bryant, Demaryius Thomas, and Justin Houston all signed on deadline day last year -- and Miller shouldn't be an exception.
