The Facts:
The club announced in a news release that Graham has been named the team's franchise player, under terms of the NFL's Collective Bargaining Agreement. The franchise tag gives Graham the option to sign with the Bengals for 2009 for a salary equal to the average of the five highest-paid kickers in the NFL for the previous season (2008 in this case).
Reported by Bengals.com
Fantasy Football Diehards Line:
The Bengals' first major move of the offseason Monday all but guaranteed kicker Graham's services for the 2009 season and (as predicted in
Sunday's Fantasy Notebook) wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh's entry into free agency. Graham would be permitted to talk with other teams beginning Feb. 27. However, the franchise-player designation means that should Graham agree to terms with another team, the Bengals could retain him by matching the offer. Should the Bengals decline to match a competing offer, the team signing Graham would be required to give the Bengals its first-round choices in the 2009 and 2010 NFL Drafts.
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