Every trade is scored on draft pick value using the standard Jimmy Johnson draft value chart (the 3,000-point chart NFL front offices use to price draft capital). We calculate the total draft pick points each side received, then measure the net difference between them. The result is a ranking of the biggest draft capital bets in NFL history.

Picks whose exact draft slot was not yet known at trade time (future picks) are valued at the round average, discounted one round per year out — reflecting how NFL general managers value future capital. Conditional picks count at half value because their conveyance was uncertain on trade day. For multi-team deals, we calculate the average pairwise spread so consensus trades where multiple teams received strong capital don't create artificial gaps. Traded players carry zero draft-chart points (since no objective chart exists for veterans), and are listed explicitly alongside the draft picks exchanged. Voided and forfeited picks are excluded. Only trades involving at least 1,000 draft-chart points qualify.

Two views: Biggest bets (at the time) values picks based on how they were projected on trade day. Biggest returns (in hindsight) re-values each pick at its actual eventual draft slot. The hindsight view excludes trades where one side received only veteran players, avoiding misleading blowouts where an elite player is counted as zero points.

Frequently asked questions

How do I read an entry?

Each row shows the trade, the teams involved, and the key draft picks and players exchanged. The colored bar and breakdown (e.g. "BAL 3,360 · NO 0") show the draft pick point value each team received under the Jimmy Johnson chart. The bold total on the right is the net point difference — the size of the draft capital exchange.

Why are players like Bill Curry, Andre Rison, and Billy Newsome listed at the top?

These trades were famous blockbuster deals where a team traded a massive draft asset — such as the #1 or #2 overall pick (worth 2,600 to 3,000 Jimmy Johnson points) — to acquire established veteran players. Because the leaderboard scores draft pick value, it highlights the colossal draft capital surrendered for those players. For example, in 1967 New Orleans traded the #1 overall pick (Bubba Smith) to Baltimore for Gary Cuozzo, Bill Curry, and a 17th-rounder. In 1973, New Orleans traded the #2 overall pick (Bert Jones) for defensive end Billy Newsome.

What is the Jimmy Johnson draft value chart?

It is the standard point system created by former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson in the early 1990s. The #1 overall pick is worth 3,000 points, declining down through the 7 rounds. We use it because it reflects the empirical market value teams use during trade negotiations.

Why isn't the Herschel Walker trade #1?

The leaderboard only scores deals where every team received draft-pick value, and in the three-team Walker deal San Diego got only veteran players — who score zero on the draft chart — so the trade doesn't qualify. The Dallas–Minnesota exchange at its heart was worth 2,199 points on trade day (those conditional picks discounted for uncertainty), which would rank #5. In hindsight it's 4,240 points — the biggest realized return in the archive — once those picks became Emmitt Smith, Darren Woodson, and Russell Maryland.

Why are veteran players not assigned point values?

No standardized point formula exists for pricing veteran NFL players across different eras. Rather than inventing arbitrary player scores, we score the draft picks objectively and display the players received.

What's the difference between "at the time" and "in hindsight"?

"Biggest bets (at the time)" scores picks as they were valued on trade day (future picks discounted by round, conditional picks halved). "Biggest returns (in hindsight)" updates each pick to its actual realized draft slot. The 1999 Ricky Williams trade is the classic divergence: a fair price at the time became a blowout when New Orleans struggled and their 2000 first-rounder became #2 overall.