Buffalo Bills lose LB Tremaine Edmunds, gain compensatory pick in 2024 NFL Draft

Mar 27, 2023 - 8:53 PM

In attendance for the annual NFL owners meetings, Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane discussed the topic of compensatory picks for the Bills in 2024. The Buffalo News’ Bills beat reporter Jay Skurski tweeted that Beane “...believes the team is in line to receive a 2024 third-round compensatory draft pick for the loss of (linebacker) Tremaine Edmunds in free agency.” and that “(a)ny remaining moves in free agency won’t compromise that, Beane said.”

NFL teams are awarded compensatory picks each season to use during the forthcoming NFL Draft based on a formula that compensates teams that lost more than gained during the previous offseason free-agency period. Those picks always take place at the ends of Rounds 3-7.

The process of awarding compensatory picks started began in 1995, and there are those who believe teams that exploit the process have leverage over teams that do not. Historically, the Bills haven’t frequently received compensatory picks. The last time the franchise received any compensatory picks was in 2016, when they were awarded selections at the end of Rounds 4 and 6.

Due to the loss of Tremaine Edmunds, One Bills Drive will now have a fairly significant compensatory pick to use in next year’s draft. Per Over The Cap (OTC), the Bills are predicted to hold one of the earliest selections among the available picks in 2024 due to Edmunds’ rank at 61 on OTC’s list.