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When we think of a trade involving draft picks, we think of players. NFL coaches figure into that conversation only as long as they are engaged in discussions with the general manager.
But over the league's history, coaches have also been traded from one team to another. When such situations arose, the team who got the NFL coach had to compensate the losing team with draft picks.
It is not common. But NFL coaches have been traded in the past, and we're looking at five cases.
NFL coaches traded for draft picks
#5 - Herm Edwards, New York Jets to Kansas City Chiefs, 2006
Herm Edwards wanted a more significant contract with the New York Jets and he believed 2006 was the perfect time to do it. He was responsible, and even after all these years still is, for their last AFC East title in 2002. He knew he had leverage since the Kansas City Chiefs were considering him, among other NFL coaches, to succeed the retiring Dick Vermeil.
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But his bargaining technique did not quite work out as the New York Jets did not value him relatively as high as an NFL coach he thought they should. Instead, they began negotiating with the Kansas City Chiefs to take over his contract. The deal eventually concluded with the Kansas City Chiefs sending a fourth-round pick to the New York Jets to release Herm Edwards from his contract.
#4 - Mike Holmgren, Green Bay Packers to Seattle Seahawks. 1999
Mike Holmgren was the NFL coach who brought the Super Bowl back to the Green Bay Packers after a fallow period.
He was also known as a quarterback guru who had developed the likes of Brett Favre and Steve Young. The Seattle Seahawks had him in their sights, with the only problem being that he was contracted to the Green Bay Packers when they wanted him in 1999.
The Seattle Seahawks came up with an offer for Mike Holmgren that he could not refuse. They offered him the money promising $4 million per year. They also planned on handing him an eight-year contract. They also wanted to give him control of the entire team by making him the executive vice president of football operations and general manager as well as the coach.
The next step was to get him out of Green Bay. The Seattle Seahawks agreed to give up their second-round pick in the NFL draft that year. Mike Holmgren moved to the Seattle Seahawks and stayed with them until 2008, during which time the franchise made their first trip ever to the Super Bowl.
Also check out: Complete 2020 NFL Draft Results
The top 3 NFL coaches who were traded
#3 - Jon Gruden, Oakland Raiders to Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 2002
Jon Gruden's stock as an NFL coach is virtually non-existent these days after his shockingly racist, sexist and homophobic emails came to light. But there was a time when he was a highly sought-after NFL coach.
He led the Oakland Raiders to consecutive playoff appearances during his time there and had an overall 40-28 record in Oakland. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were looking for an NFL coach. Meanwhile, owner Al Davis of the Oakland Raiders did not believe that Jon Gruden deserved a better payoff.
Al Davis decided to trade Jon Gruden to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In return, he received a haul of first-round picks in 2002 and 2003 and a second-round pick in 2004. What looked like a pretty good deal for the Raiders soured by the end of the season, though. They had a pretty good year and made it to the Super Bowl. But they ended up being defeated by their former coach and the Buccaneers.
#2 - Bill Parcells, New England Patriots to New York Jets, 1997
Bill Parcells was the man to revive the New England Patriots after a prolonged period of underachieving. The New York Jets wanted him to become their coach. Bill Parcells himself was open to a move as he wanted more control over personnel decisions beyond just being an NFL coach.
But the New England Patriots were unwilling to part with the NFL coach who had finally brought back respectability to the organization and led them to the Super Bowl in 1996. The Jets found a workaround by naming Parcells' assistant, a certain Bill Belichick, as their coach and then naming Bill Parcells as his consultant. This led to the New England Patriots fuming and demanding compensation.
It was arranged in the form of third and fourth-round picks in 1997, a second-round pick in 1998 and a first-round in 1999. Additionally, the New York Jets donated $300,000 to charities of New England Patriots' choice.
#1 - Bill Belichick, New York Jets to New England Patriots, 2000
But the New England Patriots got their own back three years later in 2000. It was time for the New York Jets to feel hard done by. When Bill Parcells stepped down as Jets coach after the 1999 season, he put together a succession plan that would have Bill Belichick installed as their NFL coach. While not enamored with their coach laying out his succession, the Jets still went along with it, only to be completely blindsided by Bill Belichick himself.
Bill Belichick resigned when he was supposed to be introduced as Jets coach. A couple of weeks later, he became the head NFL coach with the New England Patriots. This time, the Jets sought compensation and received it in the form of a first-round pick in 2000 and a fourth- and seventh-round pick in 2001, while giving back a fifth-round pick in 2001 and a seventh-round pick in 2002. Six Super Bowls later, though, even the New York Jets would agree that the compensation was paltry.
