NFL announces 39 compensatory picks for 2022 draft

In all, 16 teams will have extra at-bats during the draw, led by the 49ers and Rams with five each.

The NFL granted 39 compensatory selections to 16 teams on Tuesday, with a distinctly Californian feel among the teams that received the most at-bats in the Draft 2022.

The San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams each received five compensatory selections additions with the Los Angeles Chargers adding four additional at-bats. The Detroit Lions received the first additional pick, 97th overall, late in the third round after losing five key free agents and gaining just two in 2021 free agency.

The Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs joined the Rams and 49ers among the six teams that received an extra pick (two in the Niners’ case) as part of the league’s initiative to organizations develop minority candidates for head coaching or general manager positions.

San Francisco’s haul includes two third rounds (Nos. 102 and 105), two sixth rounds (Nos. 220 and 221), and a seventh round (No. 262). Both of those third-round picks come as a result of the departures of two coordinators for head coaching jobs in the past two offseasons, Robert Saleh to the New York Jets in 2021 and Mike McDaniel to the Miami Dolphins this year. Martin Mayhew also left last offseason to become general manager of the Washington Commanders.

The Niners received three compensatory selections totals for two years for Saleh and Mayhew and two more turns for two years for McDaniel. the other three compensatory selections of the Niners were apportioned based on the league’s standard compensation formula for players lost and gained during free agency.

49ers general manager John Lynch said at the 2010 scouting combine NFL that the compensatory selections they’ve become more of an emphasis for the team in evaluating offseason moves.

“I think it’s something that maybe Kyle and I need to develop,” Lynch said. “We like to be aggressive, but it’s also a valuable tool that a lot of good organizations have tried to take advantage of. To do that, you have to let good players go. That’s not something we’ve liked to do, but you have to understand that a lot of guys we’re paying them top of the market, which is a good thing because we have players who deserve to be top of the market, but you can’t keep everyone. So the game with those compensations is starting to come.”

The Niners now have 10 total picks in the draft of 2022, although one of the compensatory selections third-round pick — No. 102 or 105 — will send her to the Dolphins as part of last year’s trade to climb to third overall in the draft. The team is awaiting information on which of those options it will be. The 49ers used that shift to acquire quarterback Trey Lance.

The Rams, who beat the Niners in the NFC Championship Game, also received five compensatory selections: a third round (No. 104), a fourth (No. 142) and three sixth rounds (Nos. 211, 212 and 218). The turn in the third round is due to the departure of Brad Holmes to become general manager of the Detroit Lions, while the others are a result of the team not signing eligible non-compensatory free agents while losing defensive end Samson Ebukam, the tight end Gerald Everett, defensive lineman Morgan Fox, cornerback Troy Hill and safety John Johnson III.

Since the process of compensatory selections in 1994, the Baltimore Ravens have received the most additional picks with 55. The Ravens received two this year, a third-round pick (No. 100) and a fourth-round pick (No. 139).