Compensatory Picks?

[Verdict]

I know this topic has been beaten to death every year, but can someone refresh my memory how compensatory picks are allocated. Thank you in advance for the information.

 

[BLT]

any chance we can get 1 for fujita?

 

[Yeagermeister]

any chance we can get 1 for fujita?

No it's a #1 for Shanle remember.

 

[Eddie]

If we lose Al Johnson who was our 2nd rounder. What do we get in compensation next year?

 

[StanleySpadowski]

The formula's complex but from my understanding picks are awarded based on how many UFAs whose contracts ended are lost compared to how many are signed. The value of the contracts signed is then factored in, then the playing time of the qualifying player the following season.

Davis is a signee while A. Johnson and Coleman are losses. I'm not sure if B. Johnson counts as a signee for Dallas but I know he doesn't count as a loss for the Vikings because he was cut.

If Johnson counts as a signee, Dallas needs one more UFA of theirs to sign elsewhere to negate him.

 

[COWBOYSNUM1]

I wish they would do away with compensatory picks.

 

[k19]

Compensatory picks not sexy, but they work
Losing free agent to another team not always a bad thing thanks to draft

Go ahead, sign my free-agent linebacker. The running back, too. Pay them outrageous contracts and then make sure they put up big numbers next season.

And, no, we're not interested in playing the free-agent game and bringing in another team's discards. We'll stand pat.

If these statements came from an NFL front office, the team in question might face boycotts, riots and even the wraths of NFL experts ranging from Rush Limbaugh to Willie Brown.

Hidden in the statements, however, might be true genius.

See, teams that lose free agents and don't replace them with other teams' free agents are awarded compensatory draft picks by the NFL. And though those picks are an afterthought in most analyses of how teams are built, comp picks might have a lot more to say about tomorrow's Super Bowls than free agents.

Over the past 10 years, the teams that had the most compensatory picks were the Packers, Cowboys, Ravens, Rams, Eagles, Patriots, Bucs, Jaguars, Bears, Steelers and Titans. Only two of those 11 teams -- the Cowboys and Jaguars -- failed to reach the Super Bowl during that stretch.

In the same time frame, the teams with the fewest compensatory picks were the Browns, Texans, Jets, Bengals, Panthers, Falcons, Commanders, Chargers, Colts and Saints. Only two of those teams -- the Panthers and Colts -- played in a Super Bowl in that period.

Coincidence? I think not.

Compensatory picks are awarded to teams that lose more unrestricted free agents than they sign (players who are cut do not factor into the equation). The highest selection a team can get as compensation is a pick at the end of the third round.

The formula by which comp picks are awarded is a more closely guarded secret than the recipe for the Colonel's greasy chicken. Even NFL teams don't know it. But the picks are determined by the difference of the contracts signed by the players lost and the players acquired, as well as by the performances of the players. At least part of the formula is subjective.

No team has played the compensatory pick game better than the Ravens. They have allowed some fine players to leave as free agents -- including linebacker Ed Hartwell, running back Chester Taylor, cornerback Gary Baxter, defensive tackle Maake Kemoeatu, end Anthony Weaver, safety Will Demps, center Jeff Mitchell and corner Duane Starks. But with compensatory picks, they have drafted Taylor, fullback Ovie Mughelli, offensive tackle Tony Pashos and guard Edwin Mulitalo, among others.

The Patriots also have hit the compensatory jackpot by using bonus picks to take quarterback Tom Brady, guard Nick Kaczur and fullback Patrick Pass.

The compensatory pick system rewards teams that draft well and avoid looking for a quick fix. They select a player who becomes a starter. They lose him as a free agent and he gets a lucrative contract, so they are rewarded with a prime compensatory pick. Then they have a chance to draft a player of commensurate abilities who takes up less salary cap space.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17486531/

 

[Verdict]

I am wondering if Davis' large contract would more than cancel out the two players we have lost so far.

 

[StanleySpadowski]

I am wondering if Davis' large contract would more than cancel out the two players we have lost so far.

Even if monetary concerns were the only factor, Davis was signed at just over seven million per season while Coleman received four million and A. Johnson just over four million so Dallas would still be on the plus side with Singleton and others still available and definitely not returning to Dallas.

 

[AbeBeta]

I asked Adam a bit about this in another thread.

I thought that compensation was awarded only for UFAs who were coming off rookie contracts with more weight given based on draft position - but that is not the case.

I would think if a player was cut that he wouldn't count since he's a street FA at that point.

Honestly, based on the +/- contract equation, I can't see us getting much -- even if someone signs our other two FAs Singleton and Colombo, we'll likely pick up 3-4 mid range guys (e.g., Donnie Edwards, Carlos Polk, William James, a backup center, a G or T to fill in if we lose Colombo) and offset those signings. We don't have many UFAs to lose.

 

[jazzcat22]

The formula's complex but from my understanding picks are awarded based on how many UFAs whose contracts ended are lost compared to how many are signed. The value of the contracts signed is then factored in, then the playing time of the qualifying player the following season.

Davis is a signee while A. Johnson and Coleman are losses. I'm not sure if B. Johnson counts as a signee for Dallas but I know he doesn't count as a loss for the Vikings because he was cut.

If Johnson counts as a signee, Dallas needs one more UFA of theirs to sign elsewhere to negate him.

These figure toward next year's draft. Look at who we signed and lost last year for our awarded picks.

 

[StanleySpadowski]

These figure toward next year's draft. Look at who we signed and lost last year for our awarded picks.

I understand that picks are for the following season, hence the part of my post about performance the following year.

As far as picks this year, I don't believe there are any. Dallas lost Fujita but signed Fabini so they cancel each other and I can't think of anyone else off the top of my head who'd qualify as a loss.

 

[jazzcat22]

I understand that picks are for the following season, hence the part of my post about performance the following year.

As far as picks this year, I don't believe there are any. Dallas lost Fujita but signed Fabini so they cancel each other and I can't think of anyone else off the top of my head who'd qualify as a loss.

We lost Fujita, Campbell to Detroit and T. Tucker. I believe Tucker was cut.
Other than Fabini, the only other I can think of was Vanderjagt, or was he cut by Indy.
Call Campbell & Fabini a wash, so we may get a 5th to 7th or Fujita, since he had a much bigger contribution to the Saints. I doubt the NFL would be kind and give us a 3 rd or 4th.