After a brief confusion due to an error in the NFL’s compensatory pick distribution, the 49ers officially know they will receive two compensatory picks in the 2021 NFL draft.
The NFL officially announced compensatory selections on Wednesday. San Francisco got the pair they expected to get – a third round pick for Robert Saleh who was hired as the Jets ‘head coach, and a fifth round pick to compensate for Emmanuel Sanders’ departure from free duty.
Teams can get comp picks in a number of ways. When free agents leave, there is a formula that determines whether the team gets a pick for that player.
The other way is through the new changes to the Rooney Rule, which gives teams compensatory choices if they have hired a coach or front office member as the head coach or general manager. If a team has a minority coach who is hired as a head coach by their staff, they will be given two third-round picks spread over two years. If they have hired a minority front office member as GM, they will be given one additional choice.
San Francisco this off-season had both scenarios to play after Saleh was hired by the Jets and vice president of player staff Martin Mayhew was hired as GM of the Washington Football Team. That’s where the confusion seemed to come from in the NFL’s first list of comp picks, which awarded two third-round selections to the 49ers.
Instead, they’ll get one for Saleh this year and one for Saleh next year, and another for the Mayhew rent in 2023.
The NFL corrected the error, officially giving the 49ers the No. 102 overall pick and the No. 180 overall selection. San Francisco is now set to go into design with 10 tips.