Steelers not awarded any compensatory draft picks by NFL

Chris Adamski
Friday, Feb. 23, 2018 5:18 p.m. | Friday, Feb. 23, 2018 5:18 p.m.

Christopher Horner | Tribune-Review

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin talks about the team's first round draft pick T.J. Watt next to general manager Kevin Colbert Thursday, April 27, 2017, at the Steelers headquarters on the South Side.

Joe Rutter | Tribune-Review

Steelers staffers began getting ready for the NFL Draft by setting up a table and microphones for a press conference next week involving GM Kevin Colbert and coach Mike Tomlin.

The NFL crunched its numbers in its complicated formula it uses to award compensatory draft choices, and the Steelers were shut out for the 2018 draft.

The league announced the extra picks late Friday afternoon; 15 teams earned at least one of the 32 that were handed out – all are between the third and seventh rounds, and the compensation is based on net losses in free agency.

32 compensatory choices in the 2018 @NFL Draft have been awarded to 15 teams pic.twitter.com/7so8TJfChd

— Michael Signora (@NFLfootballinfo) February 23, 2018

The Steelers, who were hopeful for a late compensatory pick, used their third-round compensatory pick last season on running back James Conner.

This is the first time since 2011 that the Steelers will not have a compensatory draft pick – they have had nine over the previous six drafts, including three in 2014.

The #Steelers will not get a compensatory draft pick this year. There was thought they might get a sixth- or seventh-rounder.

— Joe Rutter (@tribjoerutter) February 23, 2018

The decision leaves the Steelers with seven picks in the seven-round draft. They will choose No. 28 overall in the first round, which is in Arlington, Texas, this year and begins April 26. They also pick in the second and third rounds, with two picks each in the fifth and seventh rounds.

The San Francisco 49ers and Steelers swapped fourth- and fifth-round picks as compensation for an August trade to Pittsburgh tight end Vance McDonald. The Steelers' sixth-rounder was sent to Tampa Bay for safety J.J. Wilcox a week later, and the extra seventh-round pick is the result of the trade of Ross Cockrell to the New York Giants.

Chris Adamski is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at cadamski@tribweb.com or via Twitter @C_AdamskiTrib.

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