The Detroit Lions lost a key player on their defense when DJ Reader signed with the New York Giants on Tuesday. While Reader may not find that the grass is greener in New York, trying to replace Dexter Lawrence, there are still repercussions being felt in the Motor City as a result of his departure.
Reader’s two-year, $12.5 million deal, nearly a week after that deadline, isn’t funny business on the surface, as plenty of GMs wait for the deadline to pass to protect their picks. But Pride of Detroit’s Jeremy Reisman noted that “there is something fishy going on” after Reader visited the Giants on April 13 and signed with the team after the deadline.
“As it stands, the Giants are projected to earn a 2027 fourth-round compensatory pick after Wan’Dale Robinson signed a four-year, $70 million contract with the Titans,” Reisman wrote. “If Reader’s reported deal were to count in the formula, it would likely downgrade that pick to a later round. There’s a clear motivation for the Giants to wait.
“On the Lions’ side, they are already projected to pick up two sixth-round picks in 2027. Reader’s loss, if it had counted against the formula could have added another sixth.”
NFL’s Compensatory System May Be Broken After DJ Reader Leaves Lions for Giants
A late Day 3 draft pick isn’t the biggest loss the Lions could suffer. But it’s still significant considering how general managers have abused the compensatory formula. While teams that lose a player who counts toward the formula are awarded a draft pick, the value of that pick can decrease if the team in question signs a similar player during free agency. For example, the Lions gained a sixth-round comp pick when Alex Anzalone signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last spring, but had it canceled out when they signed Cade Mays, per Over The Cap.
Teams are aware of this, often biding their time in the weeks leading up to the deadline to protect their compensatory picks. But the Lions have a gripe, considering Paul Schwartz of the New York Post reported on April 19 that the Giants were expected to sign Reader after the draft to protect their compensatory picks.
Over The Cap’s Jason Fitzgerald also suggested at the time of the report that the league could intervene due to the evidence. But Reisman also noted that Reader may have also wanted to wait to see what the Giants did in the draft and decided to sign when sixth-round pick Bobby Jamison-Travis was the only addition to the defensive line, which is a valid argument that could spare New York.
Still, the situation shows that the league’s compensatory picks system is being abused. While Reader isn’t a big enough signing to inspire some change, it is enough to keep the Lions what they would have gotten if he signed before the draft.
More Detroit Lions News & Rumors:
Add us as a preferred source on Google