With all the uncertainty of what will happen during the 2024 NFL draft in Detroit this week, one thing is surefire: There will be trades. Lots of them in every round, more than likely.
NFL teams negotiate trade terms based on draft value charts. There are several different ones, with the most famous being the “Jimmy Johnson” chart from Johnson’s time running the Dallas Cowboys. That was back in the 1990s, however, and the changes in the game, the salary impact of rookie contracts and other factors have left Johnson’s value calculations somewhat antiquated.
Here at Draft Wire and the other USA TODAY Wire network sites, we lean heavily on the draft value chart developed more recently. Known as the Rich Hill model, it stems from a modernizing of Johnson’s charts initially undertaken by Rich Hill of Pats Pulpit several years ago.
The values for each pick on the Hill model are here on one handy chart.
The values are more guidelines than they are strictly adhered to by teams. Player supply/demand at positions, relative state of the roster for the teams involved, and simple carnal desire to get a deal done can all create variances from steadfastly sticking to the values here. But the chart is a good reference point for seeing how realistic a trade proposal might be.
