Why are so many 2025 NFL Draft picks still unsigned?
Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
NFL rookies aren’t signing because of one deal from the Texans, and contract language is to blame.
In 2011, the NFL and NFL Players Association reached a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement. A huge piece of the new agreement was a rookie wage scale, limiting how much players on their first NFL contracts would be paid. In 2010, Sam Bradford’s six-year, $78 million deal made him the highest-paid player in NFL history despite never playing a snap, and owners pushed hard for the change.
Because rookie wages have been slotted in ever since, and the penalties for holding out were also greatly increased, we haven’t seen a lot of contract issues with rookies in the last decade. This year, it’s very different.
2025 second-round picks are unsigned across the NFL
On May 8th, the Houston Texans inked their second-round pick, Jayden Higgins, to a typical four-year deal at the slotted 34th overall pick compensation rate. Nothing about that was weird. But the contract was the first fully guaranteed contract for a second-round player in NFL history. To that point, only first-round players signed fully guaranteed contracts.
At slot 33, the Cleveland Browns were in a bind. Picks 32 and 34 both had fully guaranteed contracts, so they would have to do it, too. The next day the Browns followed suit, signing Carson Swesinger to a fully guaranteed deal.
That’s where it’s ended. No other second-rounders have signed as they all attempt to negotiate fully guaranteed deals, as well. The Seattle Seahawks and pick 35 Nick Emmanwori are the next domino in the conversation, but if another player further down the draft order gets a fully guaranteed deal, the floodgates could open.
For a little context, last year’s 33rd overall pick, Keon Coleman of the Buffalo Bills, signed a four-year deal worth $10,074,258 per Spotrac, a website devoted to sports contracts. $9,640,505 of it was fully guaranteed. That’s a hair under 96% of it fully guaranteed, and just $433,753 in difference. The 64th overall selection, San Francisco’s Renardo Green, had just more than 52% of his contract fully guaranteed.
Why is fully guaranteed money important in NFL contracts?
Unlike in the other major sports, NFL contracts are not fully guaranteed at signing unless specifically written into the deal. It’s why you will sometimes see bloated per-year averages because teams tack on an inflated year or two at the end to get the total salary higher for appearances but they have no intention to pay that money.
We saw the power of fully guaranteed money with the Russell Wilson move in Denver. The Broncos paid him nearly $38 million in 2024 and he wasn’t even on their roster. They cut him, he signed with the Steelers, and Pittsburgh paid him just $1.2 million.
The only way for teams to get out of paying fully guaranteed money is if the player retires or screws up by being suspended or violating league rules. That kind of offset language is sometimes the basis for holdouts.
Shemar Stewart’s holdout is related to offset language
The Cincinnati Bengals and first-round pick Shemar Stewart are also in a contract stalemate right now, but it’s not about guaranteed money, at least not in the same sense as the second-rounders. As a first-round pick, Stewart’s complete four-year contract will be fully guaranteed and the team will have a fifth-year option.
Stewart and the Bengals are instead fighting over that offset language in the contract. Offset language is a clause or clauses added to a contract that would void future guaranteed money. They can be added for things like weight fluctuations and even on-field performance, but most of the time they are as simple as don’t get suspended.
In the past, the Bengals have not included offset language for first-round picks but they are attempting to change their own precedent by inserting clauses into Stewart’s deal. That’s why he and his agent are digging in.
At the time of publication, there are three first-round picks that remain unsigned and 30 second-round picks have yet to sign. Three third-rounders and six from the fourth round finish up the list.
