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This week, the National Football League released the list of dates for all of the critical league events taking place between now and the 2016 NFL Draft.
While the venue and even the city where the next Draft will be held is still under discussion, the dates are now set in stone - the event will be held the same weekend as it was in 2015, which will fall on April 28 through 30 in 2016. Free agency, however, will start a week later than this year, and will begin next March 15th. In 2015, that process started on March 10th instead.
We also have the final cut-down dates for the roster towards the end of the 2015 training camp. Teams must cut down to 75 players by September 1st, with the final cut to 53 coming four days later on the 5th.
Check below for many of the big dates on the calendar, and you can see the entire calendar in the NFL's press release here.
| Date | Event |
| September 1 | Roster cut-down to 75 players (4:00 PM ET) |
| September 5 | Roster cut-down to 53 players (4:00 PM ET) |
| September 6 | Waiver claim deadline for released players (12:00 PM ET); teams may begin signing Practice Squad players (1:00 PM ET); players may be placed on Injured Reserve as "Designated for Return" (4:00 PM ET) |
| October 6-7 | Fall League Meeting (New York, NY) |
| November 3 | Trade Deadline (4:00 PM ET) |
| January 4 | Option period begins for 2013 first-round draft picks |
| January 23 | East-West Shrine Game (St. Petersburg, FL) |
| January 30 | Senior Bowl (Mobile, AL) |
| February 22 | First day to designate Franchise or Transition players |
| February 23-29 | 2016 NFL Scouting Combine (Indianapolis, IN) |
| March 7 | Final day to designate Franchise or Transition players |
| March 12-15 | "Legal Tampering" period - clubs may contact and begin negotiations on contracts with Unrestricted Free Agents from other teams |
| March 15 | 4:00 PM ET - 2016 League Year and Unrestricted Free Agency begin |
| March 20-23 | Annual League Meeting (Boca Raton, FL) |
| April 4 | Teams with new head coaches can begin offseason workouts |
| April 18 | Teams with returning head coaches can begin offseason workouts |
| April 22 | Deadline for Restricted Free Agents to sign Offer Sheets with other teams |
| April 27 | Deadline for original teams to match Offer Sheets to Restricted Free Agents |
| April 28-30 | 2016 NFL Draft (location TBD) |