Albert Breer of the NFL Network tweeted out the 2013 restricted tender amounts for the upcoming offseason as we move towards the start of free agency. The numbers, as expected, only increased by the minimum 5%, as per the CBA, which shows that the 2013 salary cap won\’t rise much in 2013.
2013 Restricted Free Agent Tender Amounts
First-round tender $2.879 million
Second-round tender $2.023 million
Original round tender $1.323 million
Right of first refusal tender $1.323 million
The Pittsburgh Steelers have six restricted free agents this offseason that they will be able to restricted tender if they so choose and those players are: running back Jonathan Dwyer, punter Jeremy Kapinos, nose tackle Steve McLendon, running back Isaac Redman, line backer Stevenson Sylvester, and wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders.
Last offseason the Steelers tendered offers to six of their restricted free agent players and they were wide receiver Mike Wallace, cornerback Keenan Lewis, safety Ryan Mundy, tight end David Johnson, offensive guard Doug Legursky and offensive guard Ramon Foster.
Last year Wallace received a first round tender of $2.742 million, while the other five players received the lowest tender amount of $1.26 million. Wallace of course refused to sign his tender until the end of training camp as he was unhappy that he couldn\’t reach a long-term contract extension with the Steelers during the offseason.
When a team offers tenders to their restricted free agents they reserve the right to retain said players by matching any offer sheets that those players might sign with another team during the free agency signing period. Should they decide not to match the offer sheet, they would receive as compensation a draft pick from the team that matches the level of the tender offered the player.
For example, should the Steelers decide to tender Sanders at a second round level they would receive a second round draft pick from the team that signs him away should they decide to not match the offer sheet that Sanders signed. Should the Steelers only place an original round tender on Sanders instead, then they would receive a third round draft pick from the team signing him away as compensation as that was the round that Sanders was originally drafted in.
As far as players who were originally signed as undrafted free agents such as Redman and McLendon, the Steelers would not receive any draft pick compensation should they place the lowest right of first refusal tender on either of them. They would have the right, however, to match the offer sheet that either player were to sign.
