Ranking the 10 NFL players likeliest to be franchise tagged

10. Kyle Dugger, S, New England Patriots

The Patriots have 15 impending unrestricted free agents including offensive contributors Kendrick Bourne, Ezekiel Elliott, Hunter Henry among others. However, the New England player most likely to receive the tag would be Dugger. The fourth-year safety tied for the team lead in interceptions while also registering the second-most pass breakups and third-most tackles while playing 98% of the Patriots defensive snaps. Given New England’s large class of free agents, it’s no guarantee that Dugger will even get tagged, pushing him down this list a bit, however with new head coach Jerod Mayo being a defense-first leader, the move would make a lot of sense.