With the Pats announcing dates for this years OTAs it seemed that this would be a good time to update the 2013 calendar for the Pats and the NFL. Hopefully some of you will find this to be a handy piece of reference over the course of the season. Dates with an ~ elliptical are best guesses based on recent history, while the rest of the dates should be accurate. Updates will be made periodically throughout the year as more information becomes available.
Feb 9-10: Regional Combine, Los Angeles
Feb 16-17: Regional Combine, Houston
Feb 17: Regional Combine, Cleveland
Feb 18: Teams may designate franchise or transition players
Feb 20-26: NFL Scouting Combine, Indianapolis IN
March 1: Teams are no longer required to grant permission to another team to discuss the position of head coach with an assistant coach
March 1-April 2: Colleges hold their Pro Days for NFL scouts
March 2-3: Regional Combine, New Jersey
March 4: Deadline for teams to designate franchise and transition players, 4:00 PM
March 9-11: Teams may begin entering contract negotiations with players who will be unrestricted free agents. Qualifying offers to restricted free agents who the team wants to retain should also be made during this time. This is the first season in which teams will be allowed a 3-day negotiating window with unrestricted free agents from other teams, though a contract cannot be signed or submitted to the league until the start of free agency.
March 9: Regional Combine, Tampa Bay
March 10: Regional Combine, Chicago
March 11: League announces official salary cap figure for 2013 ($123.9 million: $123 million, plus an automatic minimum of $900,000 per team). This represents a $3.3 million increase over the 2012 cap. The Patriots carry forward $5.6 million they did not use on the 2012 cap for an adjusted individual cap number of $128.6 million, giving them about $25 million available at the start of free agency and the new league year.
March 12: Official start of the 2012 league year, 4:00 PM
March 12: Deadline for teams to submit qualifying offers to their restricted free agents (RFA) with expiring contracts and to whom they desire to retain a right of first refusal/compensation, 4:00 PM
March 12: Deadline for teams to submit a minimum salary offer to retain exclusive negotiating rights to their players with expiring 2011 contracts (ERFA) and who have fewer than three seasons of free agency credit, 4:00 PM
March 12: Deadline for teams to exercise options for 2012 on all players who have option clauses in their 2011 contract, 4:00 PM
March 12: Start of free agency: all players with contracts ending in 2011 other than those outlined above become free agents (UFA) and can negotiate a new contract with any team, 4:00 PM
March 12: Start of the trading period, 4:00 PM
March 16-17: Regional Combine, Atlanta
March 17-20: Annual NFL Owners Meeting, Phoenix AZ
March 18: Compensatory Draft Picks Announced
March 19: With compensatory picks announced, the full order of all draft picks will be finalized and announced
March 23-24: Regional Combine, Seattle
March 23-24: Regional Combine, Baltimore
April 1: Teams that have hired a new head coach can begin off season programs
April 4: Preseason schedule announced
April 4: Patriots Hall of Fame Nomination Committee meets to nominate three finalists for this year’s fan election process
April 6-8: Super Regional Combine, Dallas
April 15: Patriots announce three finalists for the team’s Hall of Fame; fan voting commences, concluding on May 15. The winner will be announced in June and the induction ceremony will be held on Sept 21.
April 15: Teams with a returning head coach can begin off season programs
Teams may have up to a maximum of ten OTAs during the offseason
April 15: Pats voluntary offseason strength and conditioning program begins, continuing until June 13
April 15-28: Per the CBA this is Phase One of OTAs and can last for two weeks. Only strength and conditioning coaches may be present; other coaches may not attend or observe in any way. Footballs cannot be used, with the exception of quarterbacks throwing to uncovered receivers, and no helmets may be worn.
April 18: NFL regular season schedule announced, 8:00 PM (NFLN and ESPN)
April 19: Deadline for signing of offer sheets by restricted free agents; after this date other teams cannot make offers to RFAs; if player does not sign tender offered him his old team can replace that offer with a tender of 110% of the player’s 2011 base salary.
April 24: Deadline for Old Club to exercise Right of First Refusal to Restricted Free Agents
April 25: First round of the NFL Draft, New York City, 8:00 PM (NFLN and ESPN)
April 26: Second and third round of the NFL Draft, 7:00 PM (NFLN and ESPN)
April 27: Rounds 4-7 of the NFL Draft, 12 Noon (NFLN and ESPN)
April 27: Teams can sign undrafted free agents (UDFA) as soon as the draft is concluded.
April 29-May 19: Phase Two of OTAs begins, which can last three weeks.
All coaches are now permitted on the field.
Workouts may include individual player instructions and drills, with offense or defense only but no offense and defense at the same time.
Special-teams drills may also be conducted without opposing units on the field at the same time.
There can be no live contact and no one-on-one competition, and no bump-and-run coverage of receivers by defensive backs.
Helmets are still not permitted.
May 3-5: Pats rookie mini-camp
May 15: Fan voting for the team Hall of Fame concludes.
~ May 15: Except for a three day minicamp that may be held within 15 days of the draft (above), this is the first day that players eligible for the 2012 Draft are permitted to participate in minicamps or meetings. If final examinations at a player’s school conclude after this date, the player is prohibited from participating in any activities until after the player’s final day of examinations. If the player has left or leaves school, he is prohibited from participating in any club activities until after the final day of examinations at his school.
~ May 20-June 13: Phase Three of OTAs begins, which can last four weeks.
A total of 10 days of Organized Team Activities may be conducted.
A maximum of three OTA days may be conducted per week during the first two weeks of Phase Three, and four OTA days may be conducted in the third or fourth week, with the mandatory minicamp scheduled for the other week.
In weeks with three OTA days, a Phase Two day may be conducted on the fourth day.
Helmets may be worn, but no other pads.
No live contact is permitted.
No one-on-one offense vs. defense drills are permitted.
Special teams drills are permitted, provided no live contact occurs.
May 20-21: Pats OTA. OTAs are closed to the public.
May 20-22: Annual NFL Spring Meeting, Boston MA
~ May 22: Pats put single game tickets on sale
May 23: Pats OTA
May 28-30: Pats OTA
June 1: Deadline for teams to send tender to unsigned Unrestricted Free Agents to receive exclusive negotiating rights for rest of season if another team does not sign player by July 22.
June 1: Deadline for teams to send tender to unsigned Restricted Free Agents, or to extend a qualifying offer to an RFA to retain exclusive negotiating rights.
June 3-4: Pats OTA
June 6-7: Pats OTA
June 11-13: Pats full squad mandatory mini-camp
~ June 14: Winner of the fan voting for induction to the Patriots’ Hall of Fame announced.
June 14: Deadline for teams to withdraw qualifying offer to unsigned Restricted Free Agents and still retain exclusive negotiating rights by substituting June 15 Tender of one-year contract at 110 percent of previous year’s salary.
June 23-29: Rookie Symposium, Aurora OH
~ July 5: 24 hour waiver claiming system begins
~ July 14: NFL Supplemental Draft
July 15: Franchise player signing deadline. Franchise players cannot sign multi-year contracts after this date; they may only sign a one-year contract with the old club, and contract cannot be extended until after the club’s last regular season game.
~ July 18: Training camp opens for rookies, one week earlier than veterans.
July 21: End of signing period for Unrestricted Free Agents who received June 1 tender; old club has exclusive negotiating rights to these players until the Tuesday after the 10th regular-season weekend.
July 21: End of signing period for Transition Players to sign with new clubs.
~ July 24: Training camp opens (teams can begin training camp 15 days prior to first preseason game).
Sat Aug 3: NFL Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Canton OH, 7 PM (NFLN)
Sun Aug 4: Hall of Fame Game (first preseason game), Dallas vs Miami, Canton OH, 8 PM (NBC)
Tue Aug 6: Deadline for players under contract to report to their clubs to earn an accrued season.
Tue Aug 6: Deadline for teams to trade rights for unsigned drafted rookies.
Fri Aug 9: Preseason week one, Patriots at Philadelphia Eagles; 7:30 PM (WBZ)
Fri Aug 16: Preseason week two, Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Patriots; 8:00 PM (FOX)
Thur Aug 22: Preseason week three, Patriots at Detroit Lions; 7:30 PM (WBZ)
~ Aug 27: Roster cutdown to a maximum of 80 players
Thur Aug 29: Preseason week four, New York Giants at Patriots; 7:30 PM (WBZ)
Mon Sept 1: Roster cutdown to a maximum of 53 players
Sun Sept 2: Teams may establish practice squads with a maximum of 8 players
Thur Sept 5: First regular season game of NFL season; 8:30 pm (NBC)
Sun Sept 8: Week 1, Patriots at Bills; 1:00 PM (CBS)
~ Tues Sept 10: Players signed after this date are not guaranteed their full salary
Thur Sept 12: Week 2, Jets at Patriots; 8:25 PM (NFLN)
Sat Sept 21: Pats 2012 team Hall of Fame induction ceremony, 5:00 PM
Sun Sept 22: Week 3, Bucs at Patriots; 1:00 PM (FOX)
~ Tues Sept 24: Waiver claims ranked by current (2013) standings rather than previous year’s standings
Sun Sept 29: Week 4, Patriots at Falcons; 8:30 PM (NBC)
Sun Sept 29: NFL International Series: Pittsburgh at Minnesota, in London
Sun Oct 6: Week 5, Patriots at Bengals; 1:00 PM (CBS)
Sun Oct 13: Week 6, Saints at Patriots; 4:25 PM (FOX)
~ Tues Oct 15: Trade deadline
~ Tues Oct 15: Waiver system now also applies to veteran players
Sun Oct 20: Week 7, Patriots at Jets; 1:00 PM (CBS)
Sun Oct 27: Week 8, Dolphins at Patriots; 1:00 PM (CBS)
Sun Oct 27: NFL International Series: San Francisco at Jacksonville, in London
Sun Nov 3: Week 9, Steelers at Patriots; 4:25 PM (CBS)
Nov 10-11: Week 10; Bye Week for the Pats
Sun Nov 17: Week 11: flex scheduling begins
Mon Nov 18: Week 11, Patriots at Panthers; 8:30 PM (ESPN)
Nov 21 (Thanksgiving): three NFL games celebrating the anniversary of the Butt Fumble
Sun Nov 24: Week 12, Broncos at Patriots; 8:30 PM (NBC)
Sun Dec 1: Week 13, Patriots at Texans; 4:25 PM (CBS)
Sun Dec 8: Week 14, Browns at Patriots; 1:00 PM (CBS)
~ Dec 11: Invoices for playoff tickets sent to season ticket holders, with payment due about a week later
Sun Dec 15: Week 15, Patriots at Dolphins; 1:00 PM (CBS)
Sun Dec 22: Week 16, Patriots at Ravens; 8:30 PM (NBC)
Sun Dec 29: Week 17, Bills at Patriots; 1:00 PM (CBS)
Dec 31: Teams can sign players to futures contracts for the 2014 season
Jan 4-5, 2014: Wild card playoff games
Jan 11-12: Division round playoff games
Jan 19: AFC championship game, 3 pm (CBS)
Jan 19: NFC championship game, 6:30 pm (CBS)
Jan 26: Pro Bowl game, Honolulu HI, 7 pm (CBS)
Feb 2: Super Bowl, New York, 6:30 (CBS)
~ Feb 15 – March 1: Existing season ticket holders invoiced for 2014 season tickets, with full payment due around March 31
Note: any times referenced are for the eastern time zone
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