Thursday's supplemental draft is an often overlooked method of acquiring players. In some years, teams don't even select a single player in the supplemental draft. That doesn't mean it can't be an effective way of procuring talent, however.
A recent example of an impact player from the supplemental draft is Ravens offensive tackle Jared Gaither. The former Maryland star dealt with injuries last year, but already has 28 career starts in three years, and is considered a bright young talent.
The only player chosen last year was Kentucky DE Jeremy Jarmon by the Redskins in the third round.
Here's how the supplemental draft works. Teams make bids to the league for players in the supplemental draft pool. However, any team that makes a pick in the supplemental draft will forfeit a corresponding selection in the following year’s draft. For example, when the Redskins won the rights to Jarmon with a third-round bid, they forfeited a third-round pick in the 2010 draft.
Despite that rule, some players have such potential that teams deem them worthy of losing a pick in the next year's draft.
One such player this year is former BYU RB Harvey Unga. He recently had a pro day in which he worked out for 20 teams, and NFL Network insider Michael Lombardi says, "Unga could go in the third round, with the St. Louis Rams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Miami Dolphins having serious interest."
According to NFL.com's Gil Brandt, "The supplemental draft began in 1977 as a way to accommodate players who weren't eligible for the upcoming college football season. That year, Notre Dame RB Al Hunter (career stats) flunked out of school after the NFL draft but before his senior season in college. Because Hunter wouldn't have been eligible to transfer, the supplemental draft was created."