The sport of politics. The politics of sport.

The New England Patriots are still considering whether to assign the franchise tag to wide receiver Randy Moss for the 2008-09 NFL season. The Indianapolis Colts have franchised tight end Dallas Clark and the Baltimore Ravens have tagged linebacker Terrell Suggs as a franchise player.

What does the franchise tag do? It allows a team to offer high-end players an average of the salary of the top five players in their category rather than cede that talent to free agency.

Generally, the franchise tag can only be applied for one year. Patriots cornerback Asante Samuel was franchised for the 2007-08 season and is now a free agent, thanks to his arrangement with the Pats last year. Some may wonder if Samuel is as valuable as he was a year ago; the CB himself noted he wasn’t getting paid to not make crucial plays — such as his trademark interceptions – in Super Bowl XLII, which the Pats lost.

The franchise tag does not guarantee that a player will stay with a team, but it makes it virtually unaffordable for another team to pick him up since the price is two first-round draft picks.

Franchise players must be assigned to one specific role, which can be a drawback when it comes to the League’s more versatile performers. In a comment on footballoutsiders.com, Aaron Schatz insists Clark should have been franchised as a wide receiver, not a tight end. “If Dallas Clark is a tight end, I’m a professional chef,” Schatz writes. ”I mean, sometimes I line up in the kitchen and cook dinner, but that’s not generally where I do my work.”

Makes sense. Of course, all that matters to fans is keeping the best guys in the locker room. If franchising does the job, we’ll take it.

Yours Truly, A.F. Cook