The NFL franchise tag deadline came and went, and the New England Patriots did not take advantage of it. The Patriots declined to use the tag on one of their 15 unrestricted free agents-to-be, meaning that all of them are now officially scheduled to hit the open market in eight days.
Among the players impacted by the team’s decision is J.C. Jackson. The only realistic candidate to get tagged by the Patriots, the Pro Bowl cornerback will become a free agent at the start of the new league year at 4 p.m. ET on March 16.