If there’s one benefit of the Los Angeles Rams’ inactivity in free agency, it’s that they’ll be compensated for their losses with draft picks. Thus, the name compensatory picks.
The Rams have already seen Baker Mayfield, Nick Scott and Matt Gay all leave in free agency. Mayfield signed with the Bucs, Scott is landing with the Bengals and Gay inked a deal with the Colts.
The Rams have also signed no outside free agents themselves. The only unrestricted free agent Los Angeles has signed is Coleman Shelton, who inked a two-year deal this week.
The compensatory pick formula isn’t an exact science, but Over The Cap does a great job projecting how many picks each team will receive for their free agent losses. And so far, the Rams are projected to receive three compensatory selections for Mayfield, Gay and Scott.
Gay and Mayfield are expected to net the Rams sixth-rounders in 2024, while Scott is penciled in for a seventh-rounder. The Rams haven’t signed any qualified free agents yet, so none of those picks have been canceled out.
If the Rams do sign outside free agents, they could negate the compensatory picks they’re currently projected to receive. Les Snead and the front office tend to sign players who were released, which doesn’t count against the compensatory pick formula. They could also wait until after the draft to sign free agents when players no longer count toward picks.
