A lot of familiar faces might be walking out the door again for the New Orleans Saints this offseason. 29 different players will see their contracts expire in March, setting them up for free agency — in many cases, for the first time of their careers.
But there are different levels to this. Some players are going to be classified as unrestricted free agents, meaning they can entertain any and all offers from around the league. Others will be listed as restricted free agents, which means the Saints will have at least the right of first refusal once they’re on the open market. And a couple of players carry exclusive rights free agent status, which means their options are to play for New Orleans or nowhere else.
