Greg Olsen is a free agent.
Olsen, the longtime Carolina tight end who jointly announced with the Panthers last week that he and the team would go their separate ways, was officially released today, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media.
That makes him an unrestricted free agent who can start negotiating with teams immediately. Players whose contracts are expiring don’t become free agents until the new league year in March, but players who are released become free agents as soon as the transaction officially clears.
It’s unknown at this point whether Olsen will sign with anyone, as he has the option of working on television if he chooses to retire. But if he wants to keep playing, interested teams can start contacting him now.