As expected, the Denver Broncos used the franchise tag on Von Miller.

According to multiple reports, the Broncos filed the paperwork with the league office before the 2 p.m. deadline today (March 1). This allows the two sides to continue to negotiate toward a long-term deal. The hope is to get that done prior to the start of free agency on March 9.

Miller is the first non-quarterback player to get the exclusive tag since Richard Seymour in 2010.

Von Miller franchise tag is officially filed. It is the exclusive tag. — Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 1, 2016

If a deal can't be struck, this means Miller won't hit free agency or the open market. Since Denver put the exclusive tag on Miller, no other teams can talk to Miller. He is exclusive to the Broncos. Had the non-exclusive tag been used, teams could negotiate with Miller. The deadline for teams to reach agreement on long-term deals with players on the franchise tag is July 15.

"Designating Von as our franchise player gives us the time to continue working toward a long-term agreement," John Elway told the Broncos' website. "We've had productive talks with Von's representation, and we'll continue those discussions with the goal of making sure Von remains a Bronco well into the future."

According to Albert Breer, the Broncos won't know the exact exclusive tag figure until April.

Since teams can only use the tag on one player, unless an agreement is reached before March 9, Brock Osweiler, Malik Jackson and Danny Trevathan could hit the open market.

Elway has said after Miller that Osweiler and Jackson were the priorities for him to re-sign.

The clock is ticking but there's still time before the start of the league year on March 9.

At least one bit of speculation is over.