PFT: Competition Committee Proposes Change To Draft Order

[WoodysGirl]

Posted by Mike Florio on March 19, 2009, 11:30 a.m.

Various news reports have listed some of the rules changes that the Competition Committee will be proposing to the owners for consideration at upcoming league meetings in California.

Frankly, we haven’t busted our humps to list them all because the owners have shown in the past that they’re not averse to ignoring the advice of the Competition Committee.

But one of the proposed changes has gotten our attention.

The Competition Committee has suggested re-ordering the bottom of round one of the draft based not upon the record of the playoffs teams, but when they exit the tournament.

“A team can win a playoff game and yet get to pick [in the draft] before the team it beat,” Falcons president Rich McKay said.

Actually, under the current structure, a team can make it to the conference finals and pick before a team that didn’t even get to the playoffs at all.

As it now stands, the 30 teams that don’t qualify for the Super Bowl are ranked by record, regardless of whether they qualify for the postseason. As a result, there will be years in which a playoff team picks before a playoff team that it defeated, and years in which a playoff team picks before a non-playoff team.

This year, there’s both.

The Eagles, at No. 21, pick a spot before the Vikings, even though the Eagles beat the Vikings in the wild-card round.

Also, the Eagles pick two spots before the Patriots, even though Philly played in the NFC title game. The Patriots, despite an 11-5 record, didn’t qualify for the postseason.

Likewise, the Chargers pick at No. 16, before five teams that didn’t participate in a playoff game (Jets, Bears, Bucs, Cowboys, Pats) and eleven spots before the team San Diego beat in the playoffs, the Colts.

Though the explanation tacked onto the bottom of the AP article isn’t as clear as we’d like, it appears that the new procedure (if accepted by the owners) will give the 20 non-playoff teams the first 20 spots in the draft, with the next 12 teams being placed based on when they exited the tournament.

In other words, the wild-card weekend losers would hold spots 21 through 24, with specific placement based on regular-season record. Division-round losers would pick from 25 to 28. The conference runners-up would have spots 29 and 30, and the Super Bowl teams would get 31 and 32.

Hopefully, this is one proposal that the owners will accept.
Especially since we proposed this idea in January.

 

[Alexander]

This is so common sense you wonder why it took so long to be proposed. There is no reason a team that is 9-7 and loses the conference championship should pick ahead of a team that lost in the wildcard or divisional round.

 

[Longboysfan]

This is so common sense you wonder why it took so long to be proposed. There is no reason a team that is 9-7 and loses the conference championship should pick ahead of a team that lost in the wildcard or divisional round.

Winner.......

 

[the fake norm hitzges]

In a free enterprise system.Why are draftees told where they will work just because someone stands at a podium and calls their name?

Any player should be free to negotiate with any team.

 

[Boyzmamacita]

In a free enterprise system.Why are draftees told where they will work just because someone stands at a podium and calls their name?

Any player should be free to negotiate with any team.

The rich could surely get richer under such a system.

 

[AdamJT13]

Had this rule been in place last year, we would have been slotted one spot ahead of the Chargers instead of one spot behind them, and we likely wouldn't have traded a fifth-round pick and a seventh-round pick to move up for Mike Jenkins.

 

[Jon88]

I think Dallas shold pick in the Top 10 every year.

 

[Jon88]

In a free enterprise system.Why are draftees told where they will work just because someone stands at a podium and calls their name?

Any player should be free to negotiate with any team.

Then teams like the Saints, Bengals, and Raiders would never get anyone good unless they paid a huge amount for them. That would make contracts astronomical.

 

[cowboyjoe]

ok guess this is for adam or draft guru's;

if this rule is passed, where would we be picking in draft? how much higher picks?

 

[Randy White]

This is so common sense you wonder why it took so long to be proposed. There is no reason a team that is 9-7 and loses the conference championship should pick ahead of a team that lost in the wildcard or divisional round.

No kidding.

And it's not just the NFL, but the NBA and MLB as well.

The current system is illogical.

 

[Randy White]

In a free enterprise system.Why are draftees told where they will work just because someone stands at a podium and calls their name?

Any player should be free to negotiate with any team.

Tell that to the NFLPA. They negotiate the draft as part of the CBA.

 

[big dog cowboy]

This is so common sense you wonder why it took so long to be proposed. There is no reason a team that is 9-7 and loses the conference championship should pick ahead of a team that lost in the wildcard or divisional round.

:signmast:

Totally agree.

 

[Randy White]

Then teams like the Saints, Bengals, and Raiders would never get anyone good unless they paid a huge amount for them. That would make contracts astronomical.

I don't agree with this either.

The NFL is not like a college football where there are 110 plus teams just on division 1A for players to choose from. There are only 32 NFL football teams, with 53 openings each. The talent evens out in the end.

Let's say you're the best QB in a particular draft. Would you want to go to Dallas, where Tony Romo is the established starter, or Detroit where they don't have a franchise QB ? The same is true for just about every position on the field.

Let's say you're the 2nd or 3rd best pass rushing LB in the draft and ( the best one signed with Dallas ): would you go to Dallas and be willing to sit behind D-Ware and that other backer, or would you be willing to go to Cinci, get paid, and start ?

In todays game, where marketing trumps just about everything, the name is exposure. As much exposure as the Cowboys get, they don't get enough to justify a top athlete to be playing back up and/or special teams. Not when they can get more as a starter, even in Cincy.

 

[jrumann59]

Sounds like what the NBA does for the latter part of their draft.

 

[reddyuta]

i agree with this rule change.

 

[irvin4evs]

Derp--I always thought this was the rule! who the hell thought of the current structure?

 

[the fake norm hitzges]

Then teams like the Saints, Bengals, and Raiders would never get anyone good unless they paid a huge amount for them. That would make contracts astronomical.

thats free market principles at work.
did you get to choose where you work or did someone assign it to you?

 

[guag]

thats free market principles at work.
did you get to choose where you work or did someone assign it to you?

Well they aren't being forced to work in the NFL, they are certainly free to find a job somewhere else.

 

[AdamJT13]

thats free market principles at work.
did you get to choose where you work or did someone assign it to you?

Maybe you should read up on labor and antitrust laws before you get into this discussion.

 

[DallasFanSince86]

Derp--I always thought this was the rule! who the hell thought of the current structure?

Don't feel bad, I did too. I didn't realize how they actually did the sorting till I joined here last year.