Carolina Panthers give cornerback Josh Norman the franchise tag

(AP) There was little doubt the Carolina Panthers were going to use the franchise tag on cornerback Josh Norman if they didn’t reach a long-term deal.

The Panthers did slap the tag on Norman before Tuesday’s deadline, but decided to give him the non-exclusive tag according ot the Charlotte Observer, which at least leaves the door open for other teams to negotiate with Norman. If another team signs Norman to an offer sheet and the Panthers don’t match, that team would have to give Carolina two first-round picks as compensation.

The compensation issue is what usually prevents teams from offering franchise-tag players an offer sheet. Even if teams drafting near the end of the first round are unlikely to find a player as good as Norman, even with two first-round picks, very few teams want to pay up.

[NFL free agency starts March 9. Here are Shutdown Corner’s free-agency rankings for offensive players and for defensive players and specialists.]

Norman’s franchise tag is worth $13.95 million for the 2016 season, which is an enormous payday for him. Norman just finished his rookie deal, which was modest as a fifth-round pick. But he worked to become arguably the NFL’s best cornerback in 2015. He wants a long-term deal and it’s a good bet that the Panthers will get that done before the July 15 deadline for franchise-tagged players to sign a long-term contract.

But the door is technically open for a team to swoop in and sign Norman to an offer sheet. But in all likelihood, the Panthers and Norman will come to an agreement this offseason that will make Norman one of the highest paid cornerbacks in football for many years.