TheOak

I know I make things "not fun" lol, but it is what it is. Pay attention to the verbiage, there is either awarded or earned; earned means that there is a formula and you either earned the picks or not, awarded means the League decides who to give the picks to. Making the formula secrete is just a way for the league to mask the fact that they give the picks to whom ever they wish to.

When you insert the term "value" into a formula you make the entire thing subjective, when you make "Pro-Bowl" part of the value number you make the whole thing a joke because the Pro-Bowl selection process is a joke.

There is no "gaming the system", that is like saying that there is a 'tax loophole' there is no such thing you are either within the letter of the law are you aren't. With the NFL you are either in the leagues good graces or you aren't... The Saints remain on the naughty list.


What is a Compensatory Draft Pick?

These are draft picks in the 3rd through 7th round awarded to NFL teams who lost high value unrestricted free agents the prior year (this excludes "street free agents"). The actual formula used to determine the type of pick is not known, it's a closely guarded secret. The formula takes into account the lost player's performance, playing time, salary, and honors such as being named to the Pro Bowl.

In the off-season if a team signs more free agents than it loses, that team is not eligible for compensatory picks. Teams that sign and lose the exact same amount, but are deemed to have lost higher value players, are eligible for picks. It's important to note that compensatory picks can not be traded