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How 2025 free agency potentially earned the Colts 2 additional draft picks in 2026
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- How 2025 free agency potentially earned the Colts 2 additional draft picks in 2026
The Indianapolis Colts are currently projected to land two additional picks in the 2026 NFL draft.
According to Over the Cap (OTC), the Colts are projected to receive two compensatory selections in next year's draft based on the free agent additions they made, along with factoring in which of their own free agents ended up elsewhere.
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Every draft, the NFL awards at least 32 additional picks for certain players who go from one team to another via free agency. In short, if a team loses more compensatory free agents than they sign, they will get a draft pick in return for the difference.
Not every free agent is a compensatory free agent; there is a formula that takes into account the playing time of that free agent, their salary, and any postseason honors they received. Essentially, the better the player, the better the draft pick that the team receives for losing them.
By OTC's calculations, the Colts lost five compensatory free agents in free agency, with Will Fries , Dayo Odeyingbo , Ryan Kelly , Joe Flacco , and EJ Speed all signing elsewhere. In terms of additions, only three of the Colts' free agent signings, Charvarius Ward , Cam Bynum, and Daniel Jones , were considered compensatory free agents.
With Fries and Ward projected to be fourth-round compensatory picks, they canceled each other out, which means no draft pick was gained for the Colts. Odeyingbo and Bynum would cancel each other out (fourth round projections), as would Kelly and Jones (fifth round projections).
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However, with the Colts losing more compensatory free agents than they brought in, OTC is projecting that Indianapolis will receive two seventh-round picks in 2026--one for Flacco and one for Speed.
Grant Stuard and Kylen Granson , who signed elsewhere, along with Neville Gallimore , who the Colts brought in, do not qualify as compensatory free agents.
According to CBS Sports, the Colts have seven picks in next year's draft. Assuming these compensatory projections hold true, Indianapolis will now have nine.
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: 2026 NFL draft: Colts projected to land two compensatory selections
