NFL Announces Compensatory Picks For 2020 Draft
The NFL has awarded compensatory draft picks for teams in the 2020 draft.
These picks are awarded to the teams that suffered the most significant free agent losses during the 2019 offseason. This year, the Patriots top the list (shared below) with a league-high four picks.
The comp pick formula assigns picks who suffered the largest net losses, so teams that signed multiple free agents have a lesser chance of receiving picks. The Ravens collected two this year and remain in the all-time lead (from 1994-2020) with 52. No other franchise has accumulated more than 43 compensatory picks.
Here’s the full breakdown, by round and by team:
By Round:
Round 3: Texans (No. 97 overall), Patriots (98), Giants (99), Patriots (100), Seahawks (101), Steelers (102), Eagles (103), Rams (104), Vikings (105), Ravens (106)
Round 4: Buccaneers (No. 139), Bears (140), Dolphins (141), Redskins (142), Ravens (143), Seahawks (144), Eagles (145), Eagles (146)
Round 5: Broncos (No. 178), Cowboys (179)
Round 6: Patriots (No. 212), Patriots (213), Seahawks (214)
Round 7: Giants (No. 247), Texans (248), Vikings (249), Texans (250), Dolphins (251), Broncos (252), Vikings (253), Broncos (254), Giants (255)
By Team:
- New England Patriots (4)
- Denver Broncos (3)
- Houston Texans (3)
- Minnesota Vikings (3)
- New York Giants (3)
- Philadelphia Eagles (3)
- Baltimore Ravens (2)
- Miami Dolphins (2)
- Chicago Bears (1)
- Dallas Cowboys (1)
- Los Angeles Rams (1)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (1)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1)
- Washington Redskins (1)
The compensatory free agents lost and gained in 2019 by the clubs that will receive compensatory picks in the 2020 draft:
- Baltimore Ravens
- Lost: John Brown, C.J. Mosley, Za’Darius Smith, Terrell Suggs
- Gained: Mark Ingram, Earl Thomas
- Chicago Bears
- Lost: Adrian Amos, Josh Bellamy, Bryce Callahan, Eric Kush
- Gained: Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Cordarrelle Patterson, Buster Skrine
- Dallas Cowboys
- Lost: Cole Beasley, Geoff Swaim, Damien Wilson
- Gained: Randall Cobb, Christian Covington
- Denver Broncos
- Lost: Shaquil Barrett, Tramaine Brock, Max Garcia, Matt Paradis, Bradley Roby, Billy Turner
- Gained: Bryce Callahan, Kareem Jackson, Ja’Wuan James
- Houston Texans
- Lost: Christian Covington, Kareem Jackson, Kendall Lamm, Tyrann Mathieu
- Gained: Bradley Roby
- Los Angeles Rams
- Lost: Lamarcus Joyner, Rodger Saffold
- Gained: Clay Matthews
- Miami Dolphins
- Lost: Brandon Bolden, Frank Gore, Ja’Wuan James, Cameron Wake
- Gained: Ryan Fitzpatrick, Eric Rowe
- Minnesota Vikings
- Lost: Tom Compton, Nick Easton, Sheldon Richardson, Trevor Siemian
- Gained: Shamar Stephen
- New England Patriots
- Lost: Malcom Brown, Trent Brown, Trey Flowers, Chris Hogan, Cordarrelle Patterson, Eric Rowe, LaAdrian Waddle
- Gained: Brandon Bolden
- New York Giants
- Lost: Jamon Brown, Landon Collins, Mario Edwards, Josh Mauro, B.W. Webb, Kerry Wynn
- Gained: Markus Golden, Golden Tate
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Lost: Nick Foles, Jordan Hicks, Golden Tate
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Lost: Le’Veon Bell, Jesse James
- Gained: Steven Nelson
- Seattle Seahawks
- Lost: Justin Coleman, Brett Hundley, Shamar Stephen, J.R. Sweezy, Earl Thomas
- Gained: Mike Iupati, Jason Myers
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Washington Redskins
Cowboys Exercise Jamize Olawale’s Option
The Cowboys have picked up the 2020 option for fullback Jamize Olawale, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Olawale joined the Cowboys two years ago via trade with the Raiders and has been a key special teams piece ever since. 
[RELATED: Cowboys Increase Offer To Prescott]
In Oakland, Olawale was used to clear the way as a lead blocker. The Cowboys brought him in to take over for Keith Smith who, strangely enough, signed on with the Raiders in the same offseason.
Soon after the trade, the Cowboys gave Olawale a new three-year, $5.4MM deal with $2.8MM guaranteed, though the 2020 and 2021 seasons were left as option years. The Cowboys had to decide on those seasons before the end of the ’19 league year, and that’s what they did today.
Olawale, 31 in April, has 109 career appearances to his credit with 20 starts for the Raiders and Cowboys. He has not registered a carry since 2017 and did not catch a pass in 2019, though he was targeted twice on throws.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/9/20
Here are today’s minor moves:
Dallas Cowboys
- Re-signed: OL Adam Redmond
The Harvard product has spent the past two seasons with the Cowboys, including a 2018 campaign when he appeared in a career-high 10 games. After not seeing the field through the first two-plus months of the 2019 season, Redmond landed on the injured reserve. The lineman was set to be an exclusive rights free agent.
Cowboys Meet Again With Prescott, Cooper Reps
- Things continue to inch forward with the Cowboys and their pair of superstar impending free agents. The Cowboys met with Dak Prescott‘s agent for the first time since the start of the 2019 season last week, and they met for a second time this past week, a source told Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News. While there appears to be some momentum gathering, it also doesn’t sound like anything is particularly close, as Watkins writes everything is in a “holding pattern” as both sides await a resolution on the new CBA. Watkins writes that Dallas also met with receiver Amari Cooper‘s reps for a second time. Watkins reiterated his earlier report that the Cowboys have offered Prescott an annual salary of $33MM with $105MM in guarantees. It’s likely going to take a lot more than that to get a deal done.
Latest On Byron Jones
- A number of teams have expressed early interest in Cowboys free agent cornerback Byron Jones, but Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network hears the Giants and Eagles could potentially engage in a bidding war for the veteran defensive back. The Broncos, Lions, and Raiders have also been mentioned as possible suitors for Jones, who is reaching free agency after five seasons in Dallas. Widely viewed as the best corner available, Jones could reset the CB market by topping $16MM+ in annual salary.
Cowboys, TE Blake Jarwin Discussing Deal
The Cowboys are not eager to see Blake Jarwin get away via restricted free agency and will take some precautions to ensure the fourth-year tight end stays in Dallas next season.
Jarwin is expected to receive a second-round RFA tender, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports. The Cowboys also met with Jarwin’s agent at the Combine and discussed an extension.
A UDFA find in 2017, Jarwin has 58 receptions for 672 yards over the past two seasons. He operated behind Jason Witten in 2019, but Mike McCarthy may have bigger plans for the young target. This also represents the latest sign Witten will need to relocate to play a 17th season.
On a second-round tender, Jarwin would be in line to earn approximately $3.3MM next season. That would be a substantial raise from the league minimum, which he made for three seasons. Witten has said he is not planning another retirement just yet and would be prepared to leave Dallas if necessary. The sight of the future Hall of Fame tight end in another uniform appears imminent.
FA Notes: Clowney, Harris, Hooper, Saints
Jadeveon Clowney has drawn interest from other teams — the Colts and Giants among them — but the Seahawks remain interested in bringing him back. However, they may not be ready to pay top dollar for the former No. 1 overall pick. The Seahawks are trying to extend Clowney before he hits free agency March 18, but Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano of ESPN.com report the franchise is unlikely to compete with a true top-market price (ESPN+ link). If the bidding goes into the $18-$20MM-per-year range, which it almost certainly will given other teams’ franchise tags keeping edge players off the market, the Seahawks are not expected to go there. This would mean the Seahawks will have lost two standout edge rushers in two years, after trading Frank Clark to the Chiefs. Seattle, which did not see much from first-round defensive end L.J. Collier last season, is set to carry more than $44MM in cap space.
Both the Colts and Titans are interested and are not afraid of Clowney’s asking price, per Fowler and Graziano. A new entry in the Clowney sweepstakes, Tennessee could use edge help but seemingly has key issues to sort out involving Ryan Tannehill (or a replacement) and Derrick Henry first.
Here is the latest from the free agency market, shifting to one of this era’s top cornerbacks:
- Chris Harris appears set to have a busy legal tampering period. The four-time Pro Bowl cornerback has drawn interest from the Cowboys, Jets, Lions, Raiders and Texans, Troy Renck of Denver7 tweets. The final holdover from the Broncos’ dominant Super Bowl-winning secondary, Harris both expressed a desire to finish his career in Denver and hit the market for the first time. While the Broncos have not ruled out another extension for the 30-year-old cornerback, Harris expects to be elsewhere in 2020. Harris met with at least 24 teams at the Combine, including the Cowboys, per Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter). A Cowboys fit would be interesting, with the team set to lose Byron Jones. The Broncos are one of the teams targeting Jones.
- In Demario Davis, the Saints already have a 30-something entrenched as a starting linebacker. However, New Orleans is interested in Patriots free agent Jamie Collins, Larry Holder of The Athletic notes (subscription required). Collins, 30, enjoyed a bounce-back season back in New England, after he did not justify his then-off-ball-‘backer-record deal in Cleveland. The Saints have A.J. Klein as a free agent-to-be and can save $8MM by releasing Kiko Alonso.
- While the Saints were willing to let Kenny Vaccaro walk two years ago, they want to retain Vonn Bell, Holder adds. It would be at a price, however. Considering the Saints added promising safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson in the fourth round last year and have Marcus Williams as an extension candidate, their Bell price point may be low.
- The tight end landscape could look strange by the time George Kittle‘s negotiations ramp up. Austin Hooper is expected to become the league’s highest-paid tight end — by a considerable margin — in free agency, Graziano and Fowler note. A 2016 third-round pick, Hooper has made the Pro Bowl twice but has only one 700-yard season on his resume. However, the Falcons tight end was on pace for nearly 1,000 yards before a midseason hamstring injury. The Falcons will let Hooper test the market, and with this draft not deep at tight end, the market will likely be robust. The Bears, Packers and Redskins are interested.
- Phillip Lindsay has exploded out of the blocks to start his career, becoming the first UDFA to start his NFL run with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. But backfield mate Royce Freeman, a Broncos 2018 third-round pick, has underwhelmed. The Broncos may be eyeing an upgrade, with Mike Klis of 9News tweeting the team is exploring veteran backs on the market. With teams potentially skittish about big deals for backs, after some recent ones backfired, some bigger-name backs may be available at reasonable rates.
Cowboys, Amari Cooper To Ramp Up Talks
Facing the prospect of only one tag being available, the Cowboys are running out of time with a player who could well hit free agency. They are moving toward using the exclusive franchise tag on Dak Prescott, which would push Amari Cooper toward the market.
But the Cowboys and their top wide receiver are set to ramp up their extension talks “very soon,” according to ESPN’s Josina Anderson (on Twitter). Teams can use franchise or transition tags between now and March 12, but the prospect of a new CBA being ratified in that time frame would limit the Cowboys to using just one tag — as opposed to the two-tag setup if the 2011 CBA were to remain in place for the 2020 season.
Like Prescott, the Cowboys and Cooper have been at this a while. Dallas began planning a long-term future with Cooper shortly after trading a first-round pick for him in 2018. Yet, 16 months later, Cooper played out his rookie contract and is on the precipice of free agency. The former top-five pick has said on multiple occasions, however, he wants to stay in Dallas. New Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy wants him back as well.
The Cowboys met with Cooper’s representation this week, and with Prescott likely set for the exclusive franchise tag and Byron Jones on track to leave in free agency, that moves the standout wide receiver to the top of the organization’s pecking order. Cooper is now a four-time Pro Bowler, but after an inconsistent stretch in his final 1 1/2 Raiders seasons, he has largely delivered for the Cowboys. The 25-year-old wideout notched career-high yardage (1,189) and touchdown (eight) numbers last season.
News of the potential CBA ratification set to put the league in strong position to secure windfall TV deals this offseason may well impact these talks. The salary cap has spiked by approximately $10MM annually for years now, and it is set to come in around $200MM this year. But by 2023, the cap could be in the ballpark of $300MM. Anywhere in that vicinity would stand to impact 2020 contract talks, and with Julio Jones‘ $22MM-per-year deal raising the bar for receivers last year, Cooper may be aiming to become the NFL’s second-highest-paid wideout. Michael Thomas‘ $19.25MM-AAV deal currently holds that distinction.
Cowboys To Use Exclusive Franchise Tag On Dak Prescott?
We’ve been hearing for months that if the Cowboys couldn’t agree to a long-term extension with Dak Prescott, then they’d slap the quarterback with the franchise tag. We now have more clarity on their plan, as NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports that the organization would opt for the exclusive franchise tag (via NFL.com’s Jeremy Bergman).
This path would provide benefits and negatives for Prescott. For negatives, the quarterback wouldn’t have the ability to negotiate with other teams (whereas under the traditional, non-exclusive tag, he could leave town if another team was willing to pony up a pair of first-rounders). The benefit? While the non-exclusive tag accounts for the top-five salaries at a respective position over the past five years, the exclusive tag accounts for the top-five salaries at a respective position for the upcoming season.
As Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com notes, that current exclusive-tag quarterback value would be around $31.62MM. However, the number isn’t set in stone until the end of April, so it could easily fluctuate between now and then. For comparison’s sake, the non-exclusive quarterback tag is estimated to be around $27MM for the upcoming season.
This also provides some leverage in Prescott’s talks with the organization. The quarterback could sit on his ~$32MM salary for 2020, and then if he’s slapped with the tag again, he’d be in line to make close to $38MM in 2021.
We learned earlier this week that Cowboys officials met with Prescott’s agent, Todd France. It was the first time the two sides had met since the start of the 2019 season.
Randy Gregory Wants To Play In 2020
There was a report going around the internet earlier this afternoon that Randy Gregory had filed for reinstatement with the league, although that isn’t entirely true. Gregory does want to return to the NFL this season but hasn’t officially filed the papers yet, he told Jane Slater of NFL Network (Twitter link).
“I’m hopeful of a return to football in 2020 but papers haven’t been filed yet,” Gregory said. This is the first we’ve heard from Gregory since August of last year, when we heard that he had been making progress but wasn’t quite ready to file for reinstatement. He was supposed to file last summer, but that ended up not materializing. Gregory was suspended indefinitely almost exactly a year ago for violating the league’s substance abuse policy and the terms of his previous reinstatement.
Despite the repeated suspensions the Cowboys announced shortly after that they weren’t giving up on him, and Jerry Jones even gave him a contract extension while under suspension to keep him under team control through the 2020 season. Defensive end Robert Quinn is entering unrestricted free agency, and if he doesn’t return then Dallas could really use Gregory to provide some additional pass-rush outside of DeMarcus Lawrence.
The Cowboys drafted Gregory in the 2nd round back in 2015, but he’s been in constant trouble with the league office. He appeared in only two games in 2016 and missed the entire 2017 season due to suspensions. He returned for 2018 and played well, racking up six sacks in 14 games, before getting hit with his latest indefinite ban after the season.
Still only 27, it would be a remarkable comeback story if he’s able to get reinstated and stay on the field. The last we heard Gregory was taking huge steps to ensure he stayed in recovery, and here’s to hoping he can get back to playing.