NFL Schedule of Key Dates for Free Agency, Full 2026 Offseason Calendar Set

NFL clubs still have a month-and-a-half until the start of the 2026 league year, but teams can start tinkering with their rosters within the next two weeks.

Here's a look at some of the important contract negotiations and free agency dates coming up, courtesy of Spotrac and NFL Operations.

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• Feb. 9: Waiver period opens
• Feb. 17: Franchise tag window opens (closes March 3 at 4 p.m. ET)
• March 9: Early negotiating window opens for pending UFAs (closes March 11 at 4 p.m. ET)
• March 11: 2026 league year and free agency period begins (4 p.m. ET)
• March 29- April 1: Annual league meeting in Phoenix
• April 17: Deadline for tendered RFAs to sign offer sheets
• April 23-25: 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh
• May 1: Deadline to active fifth-year options for 2023 first-round picks
• May 19-20: Spring league meeting in Orlando
• June 1: Players designated as post-June 1 cuts released from roster
• June 15: Deadline to retain negotiating rights with tendered RFAs
• July 15: Deadline to sign a franchise-tagged player to a multi-year contract

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What teams will be able to do in free agency when the 2026 league year officially opens on March 11 will hinge at least in part on which players are designated on post-June 1 cuts.

Some players on major contracts who are reportedly candidates to be released this offseason, including Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, would cost their respective teams significantly less in dead cap if released after June 1.

In that case, their current contracts would continue restricting the cap during free agency, but their teams could create space to sign rookies and navigate the 2026 season after June 1.

Other teams have major decisions to make with the deadline to activate the fifth-year rookie contract options on players who were selected in the first round of the 2025 draft.

Some of those players include Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young, Houston Texas quarterback C.J. Stroud, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson, per Over the Cap.

One additional deadline to keep an eye out for during this period will be the official announcement of the 2026 salary cap.

The cap is currently projected to sit at $304.3 million for next season, per Spotrac, but the NFL will likely share an official number around early March. The official number for the 2025 salary cap was announced on March 1, prior to the start of the last league year on March 12.