Five franchise tag candidates

The clock is ticking toward the beginning of NFL free agency, at which point all players who are currently on expiring contracts are free to seek employment with a new team, effective at 4 p.m. ET on March 10. But there's a key date that precedes free agency, and one that will impact the pool of top players: By March 2, teams must declare their intentions for the use of the franchise (or transition) tag.