NFL Insider Tabs This Patriot As Franchise Tag Deadline ‘Winner’

One important benchmark of the NFL offseason has come and gone.

Tuesday marked the final day teams across the league could hand out their respective franchise tags. A total of 10 players were tagged, including star wide receivers Allen Robinson and Chris Godwin.

One notable player who was not tagged is Joe Thuney, who was franchised by the Patriots ahead of the 2020 season. Thuney now will officially become an unrestricted free agent when the new league year opens next week, and he’s poised to cash in on the open market.

For this reason, NFL insider Dan Graziano views the veteran left guard as one of the franchise tag deadline winners.

“It was something of a surprise last year when the Pats tagged Thuney and kept him in place for the 2020 season,” Graziano wrote for ESPN.com. “But a second straight franchise at $18 million-plus wasn’t going to happen, and Thuney will land in an open market loaded with teams looking for interior offensive line help.”

Not only are a number of teams in need of guard help, but a few of those franchises have plenty of money to spend this spring. As such, it appears Thuney will be in the right place at the right time as he takes his first career foray into free agency.