Six players were designated as franchise players in early March. Three of the six, all running backs, were unable to reach an agreement before the July 17 deadline for franchise players to sign multi-year contracts. By NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement rules, Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs and Tony Pollard are prohibited from signing long term with the Giants, Raiders and Cowboys, respectively, until after the 2023 regular season ends on Jan. 7, 2024.

Pollard is in a different boat than Barkley and Jacobs. He signed his $10.091 million franchise tag in March shortly after getting the designation. The other two ball-carriers remain unsigned.

The expectation is that Barkley and Jacobs will be no shows when the Giants and Raiders veteran players report to training camp on July 25. As unsigned franchise players, Barkley and Jacobs can't be fined $50,000 for each day of training camp missed. Attendance won't be required because of the absence of a signed contract. Barkley and Jacobs won't be withholding
services they are contractually obligated to perform.

Missing part or most of training camp and the preseason isn't out of the ordinary for unsigned franchise players. It's typically done partially to protest not getting a long-term deal and to try to minimize the risk of a serious injury.