With the 2023 NFL draft now behind us, teams will again turn their focus to the remaining free agents on the market.
That’s because beginning on Tuesday, May 2 teams can sign remaining unrestricted free agents without impacting the compensatory pick formula (barring the application of the seldom-used UFA tender). For a team like the Kansas City Chiefs, that’s an important detail as it relates to any additional free agent signings.
The team is still projected to get two compensatory picks in the 2024 NFL draft, both of fifth-round value. They’ve also got an additional fifth-round draft pick coming from the Dallas Cowboys from their Day 3 trade in the 2023 NFL draft.
The Chiefs lost six qualifying compensatory free agents this offseason: Orlando Brown Jr. ($16M), Andrew Wylie ($8M), JuJu Smith-Schuster ($8.5M), Juan Thornhill ($7M), Mecole Hardman ($4.5M) and Khalen Saunders ($4.1M). Meanwhile, the team has gained four qualifying compensatory free agents: Jawaan Taylor ($20M), Charles Omenihu ($8M), Drue Tranquill ($3M), and Mike Edwards ($3M).
While this helps the Chiefs hang onto their compensatory picks in 2024, it also hurts the team with a compensable free agent like Carlos Dunlap still out there and available. If Dunlap were to sign with another team beginning on May 2, he would not earn Kansas City a comp pick. This particular date doesn’t matter for a player like Frank Clark because he was released and wouldn’t have been eligible for the compensatory pick formula regardless.
