Draft-picks for Coaches
The Denver Broncos traded draft picks for Coach Sean Payton when they hired him this week. This was because he was under contract to New Orleans (even though he wasn’t coaching currently). Trading draft picks for coaches is highly unusual, and 3 times the Coaches traded for, later won a SuperBowl.
A little background is needed on coach “trades”. In these situations, no argument has been brought up by a Team that it is tampering. But the rewards are usually similar to player tampering, which has often been a mid-round pick. The Bellicheck situation is different – the league stepped in to say that was an attempt to “steal” a coach, in effect, by calling him a consultant.
Draft picks for Coaches (Bruce Arians)
Bruce Arians was not coaching for the Arizona Cardinals when the Bucs showed interest in Coach Arians. Late in the process, they petitioned the NFL for draft picks for Bruce Arians, and the Bucs gave up a sixth-round pick to the Cardinals. In exchange, the Cardinals gave a seventh-round selection to the Bucs. Two years later the Bucs won a Super Bowl. The Arizona Cardinals, despite having a good 2021 record of 11-6, haven’t won a playoff game since.
Draft picks for Coaches (Bill Bellicheck)
The Patriots tried to not give up draft picks for Coach Bill Bellicheck. But the NFL saw through the ruse of Bill Bellicheck being a consultant (h/t Bleacher Report). The Jets got a haul in draft picks… but the Patriots got six SuperBowls. There is a full-text note of the agreement in the New England Patriots hall of Fame. (Note the quarterback’s “coincidence” with the coach above) It’ll forever be a debate whether Bellicheck would’ve been a great coach without Brady, but everyone can see Arians as a good coach, but Brady made him a Super bowl winner.
Draft picks for Coaches (Jon Gruden)
Jon Gruden was acquired for several draft picks by Oakland. He was just what Tampa Bay needed to replace Tony Dungy. Before you knew it, Gruden brought the first Super Bowl to long-suffering Tampa Bay fans.
Remember, these draft picks are “compensation” for contracts still ongoing with coaches. These are not players who have to hold out. These coaches simply walk from an existing contract, and the new team has to pay the compensation as “compensation”. The final decision lies with the Commissioner’s office.
And just because these three coaches made a Super Bowl very quickly doesn’t mean they are a coach without match. The coach is going to an organization that is obviously highly motivated to win and win at most any cost. Often the coach will move to an organization knowing they are willing/able to give draft picks and pay large salaries to make it a top-notch organization. It’s like a chicken/egg situation, and impossible to know if they’re independent.
(Now, these Coach trades do not always work out. )Some quick examples are Coach Herm Edwards for the NY Jets and Bill Parcells for the Dallas Cowboys. But as for the 3 coaches – winning SuperBowls will be more than worth the draft picks.
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