Manly second-rower Andrew Davey claims protracted pay talks between the NRL and the players' union have left him and others with uncertain futures.
Davey was told by Manly months ago his contract would not be renewed, despite impressing this season on return from a ruptured ACL.
The 30-year-old has since been in contact with multiple clubs, and was this week linked with a move to Canterbury for next year.
But the forward said that after months of talks he was unable to get clarity on his future, with clubs telling him they were uncertain on next year's exact salary cap structure.
"It's frustrating that it has taken this long," Davey said.
"It's a lot of things. A lot of clubs don't know where they are at because the CBA (collective bargaining agreement) still hasn't been finished.
"That's frustrating for the clubs, trying to get their roster together, but also for players who haven't got a contract signed.
"Like it's mid-August. What are we doing?"
Davey has previously considered giving the game away after getting a start as an 28-year-old in 2020, revealing at the time he was losing money by giving up his former life as a carpenter.
But he is adamant he still has more years left in the NRL, and confident he will be picked up somewhere.
NRL bosses and the Rugby League Players Association met earlier this week to continue CBA discussions, with both sides confident they will be complete before the current one expires on November 1.
Any salary cap changes will not be as significant as during the 2017 talks, when clubs had overestimated the cap figure and fears of roster upheaval loomed.
But Davey said he and other lower-paid players were still being impacted, claiming he'd repeatedly been told by multiple clubs they were keen to sign him but unsure of next year's cap.
"Everybody has said it," he said.
"There's a lot of people like (in this position). And it's a lot of people who are in that mid-to-low tier. We're the last ones to get dealt with."
Davey's claims come despite the NRL and RLPA both believing salary cap uncertainty should not be clouding roster management.
The NRL confirmed to AAP on Friday clubs were told last year to work off a $9.4 million cap in 2023, and all contracts could increase by any percentage the cap goes above that.
The RLPA are also confident measures are in place to stop players being left out in the cold.
"If a player was told they cannot be signed due to not having the CBA completed, that is misleading," CEO Clint Newton said.
"There are players that have been signed from 2023 onwards, because clubs have been working on a base salary cap and with ratchet clauses in contracts.
"What would remove all doubt and uncertainty for players and clubs, would be getting the CBA done."
