There are several types of Free Agents and whether they count or not depends on what category they fall into.
Unrestricted Free Agents (UFAs) – players whose contracts have expired – and players who become Free Agents by virtue of being released by the team do not count against the team’s Salary Cap.
Restricted Free Agents (RFAs) – players who have less than 4 years of accrued service time, who have received a RFA contract tender from their team – do count against the Salary Cap, at the amount of the RFA tender.
Exclusive Rights Free Agents (ERFAs) – players with less than 4 years of accrued service time, who have received a ERFA contract tender from their team – also count against the Salary Cap, again, at the amount of their ERFA tender.
Franchise or Transition Tag – any player who receives the Franchise or Transition Tag (other than the Exclusive Franchise Tag) is still technically a Free Agent, but is restricted by the Tag. A player under the Tag does count against the Salary Cap, at the amount of the Franchise or Transition Tag tender amount.
