This year marks the NFL’s 30th anniversary of introducing the franchise tag. It was initially introduced as part of the 1993 collective bargaining agreement, allowing teams to keep pending free agents on standardized one-year contracts.
As of this past Tuesday, all 32 NFL teams are now able to place a franchise tender on a player prior to the March 7 deadline. Those players can choose to sign the tag, agree to a contract extension, be traded, or in some rare cases players will hold out.
This year, the Chiefs are expected to use the franchise tag on Orlando Brown Jr. for the second consecutive season, though they hope to be able to agree upon a long-term contract extension. This would mark the 11th time in franchise history that Kansas City has used the franchise tag.
Below are the 10 players that the Chiefs have used the franchise tag on and the results of them being tagged by the team:
1998: DE Dan Williams
Result: Sat out the entire season over a contract dispute.
2000: RG Will Shields
Result: Played on the tag.
2008: DE Jared Allen
Result: Traded to Vikings.
2011: OLB Tamba Hali
Result: Extended.
2012: WR Dwayne Bowe
Result: Played on the tag.
2013: LT Brandon Albert
Result: Played on the tag.
2015: OLB Justin Houston
Result: Extended.
2019: OLB Dee Ford
Result: Traded to 49ers.
2020: DT Chris Jones
Result: Extended.
2021: LT Orlando Brown Jr.
Result: Played on the tag.