The New Orleans Saints haven’t put as much a premium on compensatory draft picks as other teams around the league, but they’ve managed to come away with more comp picks in recent years than we’ve seen in the past. That could continue in the year ahead.
How these comp picks are awarded is a sort-of mysterious process, but the gist of it is that the NFL keeps track of how many qualifying players each team signs and loses during the past offseason, then awards draft picks to compensate for the loss of value in average pay per year. Only players whose contracts expired (not those who were released by their old teams) and with about four years’ of experience in the NFL qualify. Additionally, these comp picks are capped at four per team per year.
So the Saints did not jeopardize any comp picks in the 2024 draft by signing Derek Carr after the Las Vegas Raiders cut him in February, but last season’s moves to acquire Andy Dalton and Marcus Maye did count against the losses of Terron Armstead and Marcus Williams. Still, the NFL basically took pity on them and still gave the team a seventh-round comp pick for the net change in value.
With all that in mind: here’s a quick look at where the Saints stand for 2024 comp picks based on their 2023 free agency activity so far.
Players lost
- DT David Onyemata. Onyemata agreed on a three-year contract with the Atlanta Falcons averaging $11.6 million per year, which is valued as a fourth-round pick.
- DT Shy Tuttle. Tuttle agreed to terms on a three-year deal with the Carolina Panthers that averages out to $6.5 million per year, which is projected as a sixth-round pick.
- DE Marcus Davenport. Davenport reached an agreement with the Minnesota Vikings on a one-year, $13 million contract offer, which is projected to be a fourth-round pick.
- LB Kaden Elliss. Elliss and the Atlanta Falcons agreed to terms on a free agent contract valued at $7.1 million per year, which projects at a sixth-round pick.
Players gained
- TBA
2024 comp picks cancellation chart
| Free agents lost | Free agents gained |
| DE Marcus Davenport ($13M), Round 4 | – |
| DT David Onyemata ($11.6M), Round 4 | – |
| LB Kaden Elliss ($7.1M), Round 6 | – |
| DT Shy Tuttle ($6.5M), Round 6 | – |
