They wanted a way to add up value in a trade of draft picks. So they came up with a chart giving a numerical value to each pick in the draft. Since then a number of others have adopted the chart. Here is a copy…

http://walterfootball.com/draftchart.php

So if you look at the chart, the Jets have the 16th pick valued at about 1,000 pts. If the team with the 26th overall pick wanted to trade up into our spot, they could offer the 26th (700 pts) and 58th (320 pts) to trade up. With a value total of 1,020 points, that exceeds our 1,000 pts for the 16th pick and therefore would be considered fair value.

that makes a lot more sense, now.

i’ve seen it in alot of mocks and stuff, so i was kinda confused.

but doesn’t go far enough.

It also has to do with where a player is rated and where he is actually drafted. Let’s say that Trent Richardson is rated as a top 10 pick in the draft. If he fell to the Jets at #16, he’d be a very good value. If he fell to the 25th pick, he’d be outstanding or great value. Sometimes players fall because of off the field trouble, sometimes because of an injury, sometimes because of poor performance at the Combine or Pro Day or All Star game, sometimes because of poor interviews.

It also has to do with a team’s needs and their draft value. Teams drafting at the bottom of rounds rarely have opportunities to get players they consider the top prospects. So some aggressive GMs like Tanny trade up to address a need. Others won’t fall in love with just one prospect. They’ll closely look at players charted to go in the next or a later round and will identify several players who can help them. Then they don’t reach for one of those players by taking him too high. Instead, they’ll look to trade down or hope that one of those prospects will fall to them in a lower round. When you can address a need with a good prospect without having to overpay (trading up and giving up multilple picks to take that targeted player), you get good or outstanding value especially when that player may out perform the more highly ranked player entering the draft. Also, because you addressed the need with a player taken in a lower round, his salary will be less. So when you can find solid starters or big contributors who are role players in the middle or lower rounds, you have gotten outstanding value for that player..