Patriots’ free-agent options

Wednesday marks the first day that NFL teams can assign the franchise or transition tag on players, and the primary question with the New England Patriots is if the team does so with linebacker Dont’a Hightower.

The transition tag is a lesser option that is the average of the top 10 salaries at the position and allows the team right of first refusal on any offer a free agent might receive When safety Devin McCourty was a free agent two years ago, the Patriots elected against using the franchise tag to avoid a large one-year cap charge, then entered a competitive open-market situation before signing him to a long-term deal at the last moment.

Because the franchise tag figure is projected to be in the $14.5-15 million range, the transition tag would be a more affordable fallback option (projected to be in the $11 million range) for the team while it worked toward a potential long-term deal with Hightower.

The transition tag would give the Patriots the right of first refusal on any contract Hightower might receive in free agency, thus providing the club some leverage.