NFL free agency explained: When can teams sign players out of contact? 

The NFL calendar only offers a few quiet periods throughout the year. The few weeks after the Super Bowl are one of those times, but the noise that is bound to accompany the upcoming 2022 season is set to ramp up again rather soon. Yet even before the new league year officially starts, there is a special set time for free agents to start talking big money and new deals.

So the question now is: When can the front-office-festivities begin?

When does NFL free agency officially get underway?

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So that is a two-part question. March 14 at noon EST is when free agents can begin discussing deals with prospective teams. Of course, this is also when reports and rumors begin to leak out from NFL insiders such as Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport, usually via Twitter.

March 14 is when this legal tampering period begins and lasts all the way until 4 p.m. EST on March 16. As soon as the clock hits 4 p.m. EST, free agency will officially open, singalling the beginning of the new year. This is when the deals that were formally discussed can be finalized.

This is also when trades can be executed. Of course, NFL front offices have likely been talking for some time about potential deals. However, teams also have until the 16th to rethink their offers and restructure them in a way that serves each side the best.

This year, all the focus is going to be on potential quarterback trades. Specifically, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, and Deshaun Watson could all be on the move starting March 16. Jimmy Garoppolo and Carson Wentz are two other names to watch in these signal-caller sweepstakes as well.

An important date before all this begins is March 8. That is the deadline for teams to apply the franchise tag on their star players. Davante Adams leads this year's group, as he will either be tagged or become a top free agent on the market. Chris Godwin and Von Miller are two other huge names needing new contracts when the new league year begins.

The start of free agency is always a hectic time with players switching teams at a rapid rate. Yet this year it all comes down to the quarterback market. If Rodgers or Wilson switch teams, it is going to shake up the entire landscape of the NFL.

Then there is the case of Watson. Will he be traded on the first day? Or will teams sit and wait to see how his legal situation plays out? Any of these players being traded will also mean a haul of draft picks are heading back in return.

The fun unofficially begins on March 14 with the aforementioned legal tampering period. Yet, March 16 is when players will officially find their new teams and change the look of the NFL heading into 2022.

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