It didn't make much sense at first.
Sure, Brandon Boykin wasn't a Pro Bowl-caliber player, but he would have filled an important role for the Carolina Panthers this season. So why did they suddenly release the nickel corner last month, just seven weeks after they signed him?
There weren't any rumblings from inside the building that he didn't fit "the culture." On the surface, it appeared Boykin got the boot because the Panthers were happy with the three rookie cornerbacks they had just drafted.
But of those picks, only Zack Sanchez is getting prepped for the slot, a position he never played in college. And Sanchez, who's 5-foot-11, 185 pounds, wasn't a great tackler at Oklahoma, so it's hard to imagine he'll be a good plug-and-play solution.
Yet the new guys were how Boykin explained his release this week:
CB Brandon Boykin on Carolina: "They drafted 3 corners and decided to go with young guys. It's really been an unfortunate offseason for me."
— Brandon George (@DMN_George) June 8, 2016
That comment came after he visited and left Dallas without a contract. And that was two weeks after the Falcons passed on Boykin, who's also trying to quiet a rumor:
Brandon Boykin said his work out with the Cowboys went fine. He hopes to sign with the team. He said he has no injury issues.
— Clarence Hill (@clarencehilljr) June 8, 2016
It seems Pittsburgh defensive backs coach Carnell Lake spilled the beans Saturday at a Steelers' fantasy camp:
Lake: I can talk about him now that he isn't here. Philly cut him b/c he has a degenerative hip condition: one leg longer than other...(1/2)
— Cocktails-n-Dreams (@CraigScott31) June 4, 2016
"Our Drs didn't pick it up. He could hardly run. I felt bad for him" wow. There ya go. #steelers
— Cocktails-n-Dreams (@CraigScott31) June 4, 2016
Now it makes more sense, right?
But that's not the only reason the Panthers were worried.
According to a team source, comp picks were weighing heavily on their mind when they made the call to cut Boykin.
As you likely know by now, the NFL's comp pick formula is about as simple as biological anthropology. It's also a closely guarded secret. But there's one well known piece to the puzzle: To qualify for anything better than a seventh-round pick, you have to lose more unrestricted free agents than you gain. If you break even, you're not getting a good pick.
Besides Boykin, the only unrestricted free agent the Panthers signed this spring was center/guard Gino Gradkowski. Meanwhile, they lost cornerback Josh Norman, punter Brad Nortman and offensive lineman Fernando Velasco. So even if they would have kept Boykin, the loss column would be 3-2 in the Panthers favor, right?
Again, this stuff isn't that simple.
The issue was Velasco, who's no sure thing to make the Bills' roster. If he didn't, the Panthers would be looking at a 2-2 count. So much for that potential third-round comp pick in 2017.
General manager Dave Gettleman had a somewhat similar dilemma last year.
Many assumed former defensive end Greg Hardy would net a nice extra pick, but internally, the Panthers were worried his eventual suspension would erase what he would've added to the formula. So they signed safety Kurt Coleman and cornerback Charles Tillman, despite what it did to their comp pick numbers.
This spring, when they drafted a guy who may eventually be ready to help in the slot, the Panthers reevaluated their options.
Boykin wasn't moving great in the early stages of offseason workouts, but that didn't necessarily mean he wouldn't be able to help this coming season. If he did, would he be worth a third-round pick?
The answer was no.