Qualifying Offers
If a team gives player a qualifying offer and the player does not elect to go to arbitration , what does that mean for the player? They accept that salary for the coming year? What happens next year? Are they eligible again?
Answer
A player is under no obligation to accept a Qualifying Offer. The Qualifying Offer to a Restricted Free Agent means that the team retains the player's RFA rights, and the player has the option of accepting the Qualifying Offer. If the player chooses not to accept their Qualifying Offer, they need to agree to terms with the team, or file for arbitration and have an arbitration award. The player is never forced to accept the Qualifying Offer. If a qualified player and team do not come to terms on a contract, the team retains the player's rights until they are eligible for Unrestricted Free Agency.
