According to ESPN's Field Yates, NFL team were informed on Wednesday they can immediately trade compensatory draft picks for 2017 and future seasons.
There was some interesting news from ESPN’s Field Yates Wednesday that NFL teams have been informed they can immediately makes trades involving compensatory draft picks they may receive in 2017 and beyond. Compensatory picks are awarded to teams who are determined to have suffered a net loss during free agency.
This could impact the Seahawks since they appear on track to receive at least two compensatory picks for the 2017 draft (Seattle also has received three comp picks for the 2016 draft, but those are not tradable).
According to Yates, the release the teams received states: “For example, if a club trades its 2017 fifth-round selection, the trade may include the following condition: If the club is awarded a fourth-round compensatory selection in 2017, the club will trade the 2017 fourth-round compensatory selection in lieu of the 2017 fifth-round selection. If the club is awarded multiple 2017 fourth-round compensatory selections, it will trade the compensatory selection that is closest to the end of the round.”
This obviously has the potential to get sort of confusing for those trying to follow along.
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But for a team like the Seahawks that could have comp picks in 2017 it could also open up additional options for trades involving draft picks, something Seattle has made an art form of during the Pete Carroll/John Schneider era — the Seahawks have made 11 trades during the draft since 2010. However, Yates’ report states that the comp picks can be traded “up until the start of the 2016 draft” appearing to indicate they can not be used as part of trades made during the draft itself.
Overthecap.com, which has a good history of projecting comp picks, predicts that as of now the Seahawks would get two in 2017 — a fourth-rounder as compensation for losing Bruce Irvin and a fifth-rounder for losing J.R. Sweezy.
The Seahawks also have all seven of their own 2017 draft picks as well as a seventh-rounder from Carolina for receiver Kevin Norwood (and recall that the Panthers have confirmed the conditions of the trade were met for the Seahawks to get that pick) so Seattle will be well-stocked to make moves this year if it wants.
Yates’ report further states: “The memo also notes that effective at the start of the 2016 NFL draft and up until the 2016 trading deadline, NFL teams are permitted to trade draft picks for 2016-2019, including prospective compensatory picks in 2017-2019. Once the 2017 league begins and compensatory picks have been awarded, teams are able to trade those 2017 compensatory picks without contingency.”
The ability to trade comp picks figures to make them an even bigger factor in how teams approach free agency. Schneider has stated often the value he places in getting the extra picks and it surely has influenced some of Seattle’s decisions on how aggressively to pursue some free agents.
Only players who become unrestricted free agents when their contracts lapse at the beginning of the new league year factor into the comp pick formula. Players such as defensive end Chris Clemons, who the Seahawks re-signed last week, are not counted in the formula since he had been released by Jacksonville.