The NFL draft is now less than two months away, and with the start of the 2023 league year right around the corner things are starting to come into focus. With each team learning recently how much money they’ll have to spend in free agency, which starts next week, they have now also learned their full allotment of draft picks.
On Thursday the NFL announced the awarding of compensatory picks. Comp picks are the result of a formula from the prior season’s free agency comings and goings. The Dallas Cowboys are always one of the teams that works the system the best and this year is no different. Though they didn’t max out in terms of rounds or number of picks awarded, Dallas did land three of the free-agency related 32 selections.
The NFL has awarded compensatory picks for the 2023 draft, and the @49ers have been awarded a staggering SEVEN of them (3 thirds, a fifth, a sixth, and 2 sevenths). The Cardinals, Commanders, Browns and Chiefs were the other four teams to get third-round picks. pic.twitter.com/fQTDZ42rxe
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 9, 2023
Starting in 2022, the NFL began awarding additional comp picks based on minority head coaching and front office candidates hired away from clubs. San Francisco has been at the forefront of those awards with several more projected in 2024. The three compensatory picks means Dallas will have nine selections in April’s draft.
Dallas added pick No.s 169, 176 and 212 based on losing Randy Gregory, Connor Williams and Cedrick Wilson last offseason.
1st Round – 26
2nd Round – 58
3rd Round – 90
4th Round – 128
5th Round – 160
5th Round Comp – 169
5th Round Comp – 176
6th Round Comp – 212
7th Round – 243
The picks could have been better, but Gregory barely made an impact in Denver after leaving Dallas, and Wilson rarely saw a target in Miami.
The comp pick formula is primarily centered around the average value of a the contract the free agent signs with another team. Each team has a ledger based on qualified free agents whose contracts expired naturally and weren’t released. If a team loses more than they signed, they are in line for a pick. The average amount of dollars places a corresponding round value, but if a player doesn’t see the field or earns accolades like Pro Bowl or MVP, they can see that value change.
Gregory made enough to be worth a fourth-round pick but his lack of playtime and production dropped him below the threshold.
This year’s free agency, set to begin Wednesday, will result in another 32 picks (one round’s worth) in the 2024 draft.
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