2023 Free Agency: Legal Tampering Period Begins

The Jaguars and 31 other teams are now in wait-and-see mode as the legal tampering period begins.

Let the legal tampering begin.

As of noon, the legal tampering period has began in the NFL, which means free agents can now be contacted by other teams. Jacksonville Jaguars free agents like Jawaan Taylor and Arden Key can now start taking calls before officially signing new deals, whether with the Jaguars or another franchise. 

"From 12:00 p.m. ET on Monday, March 13 until 3:59:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 15, clubs are permitted to contact and enter into contract negotiations with the certified agents of players who will become unrestricted free agents upon expiration of their 2022 player contracts at 4:00 p.m. ET on March 15," the NFL's operations state. 

"The two-day negotiating period applies only to prospective unrestricted free agents. It does not apply to players who have received, or who may receive, a required tender applicable to the 2023 League Year (e.g., Exclusive Rights Players, Restricted Free Agents, Franchise Players or Transition Players)."

A year after the Jaguars spent the first day of legal tampering striking deals with the likes of Christian Kirk, Foyesade Oluokun, Zay Jones, Evan Engram, and Foley Fatukasi, the Jaguars' pivot has now changed to attempting to keep their own players. 

"You try to keep your core together. You try to sign as many of your free agent players as you can. This business, you know you’re going to lose some. We try to sign them all if you can," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said at the NFL Scouting Combine earlier this month. 

"We’ve got some talented guys that we’d like to have back, but we’ll wait and see, see how the process plays itself out. I think the difference for us is these are really good players we’d like to have back, then you build through this process. You build through the draft and just add depth and talent that way.”