Two high-quality receivers - Randy Moss of the Patriots and Bernard Berrian of the Bears - have not been designated as "franchise" or "transition" players by their respective teams, which means they will become unrestricted free agents next Friday.
Unless their respective teams re-sign them, that is.
Both the Patriots and Bears are hoping to retain their big-time receivers and will work toward locking them up before the free agency signing period begins next week. But it's possible one or both could hit the open market.
With teams using the "franchise" and "transition" designations liberally this year, it was a wait-and-see situation for both receivers this week. By using either designation, it severely restricts other teams' ability to sign them becasue of the heavy draft compensation involved. But without that kind of protection for Moss and Berrian, it'll be interesting to see what happens if and when they hit the open market.