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The Cincinnati Bengals have received a third and fourth-round compensatory pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, according to Geoff Hobson.
32 total picks were awarded at the annual NFL Owners Meetings on Monday, and the Bengals got theirs due to Michael Johnson and Anthony Collins leaving to sign big deals with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last offseason. The Bengals' third-round compensatory pick will be the 99th overall selection. The fourth-round additional pick will be selection 135 overall.
The irony is that both players were cut after one year, and Johnson has already signed with the Bengals on a new four-year deal worth up to $24 million. In other words, Cincinnati got a third-round pick and Johnson back on a manageable deal while he got to spend a year in beautiful Tampa.
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Johnson signed a five-year, $43.875 million deal in 2014, and has already collected $16 million of the $23 million in "guarantees" before being cut this offseason. By cutting him before March 12, the Buccaneers saved the final $7 million "guaranteed" payment.
As for Collins, he signed a five-year, $30 million contract last year and the Bucs paid him $9 million to be one of the worst starting tackles in the NFL last season. He too was cut this offseason. His deal resulted in the Bengals' fourth-round selection.