Football is littered with specialized terminology. From punt gunner to climbing the pocket, commentators rarely get to explain everything you need to know before the next play. Inside The Pylon’s glossary was developed to give fans a deeper understanding of the game through clear explanations, as well as image and video examples. Please contact us with any terms or phrases you’d like to know more about.
Street Free Agent
A street free agent is any unsigned player, who is not on a practice squad, 53-man roster, nor otherwise employed by a football team. These players are available to teams after the main Unrestricted Free Agency, Restricted Free Agency, and Undrafted Free Agency periods are complete. This term is typically reserved for those who are “on the street” during the course of the season and those who have been under contract with an NFL team at some point in their career.
Former #1 overall pick, offensive tackle, Jake Long was a street free agent during the 2015 season, as he was not signed until week 2 by the Atlanta Falcons.
Typically, veteran street free agents will most often be mentioned/noted between Week 2 and the end of the regular season when teams are signing players to Reserve/Future contracts, as their full-year salaries will not be guaranteed since they were not on a Week 1 roster.