Lions Announce They Will Not Franchise Suh
By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak
CBS DETROIT - The Detroit Lions announced Monday, the deadline for NFL teams to designate franchise players, that they will not use the franchise tag on All-Pro defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.
The #Lions will not place the franchise tag on DT Ndamukong Suh.
— Tim Twentyman (@ttwentyman) March 2, 2015
Suh is set to become a free agent March 10. The team had been working since before the 2014 season to sign Suh to a long-term deal but evidently could not come to an agreement.
It would have cost the Lions $26.9 million to franchise Suh, who has been the centerpiece of the defense during his tenure. Last season the team went 11-5 because of that defense. At the NFL combine last month, Lions general manager Martin Mayhew reiterated the team's willingness to spend big to re-sign Suh, but he said the organization was still debating whether to use the obscenely expensive franchise tag.
"When you talk about good players, you talk about spending money to get those guys signed, so we're prepared for what it takes financially to get him signed," Mayhew said then. "In terms of the franchise tag, we're still talking about it. We have not made a final determination about whether to use that or not.
"When you make that kind of financial commitment, it kind of determines what else you can do during the offseason, so that's going to be part of the equation – the value of having him versus if we don't get something done long-term, losing him, what we're able to get accomplished in the offseason," Mayhew added.
The Lions still hold exclusive negotiating rights with Suh until March 7, when other teams can legally begin negotiating with Suh's agent Jimmy Sexton.