DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Non-Browns 1st round picks signing thread...

All things considered this has been a fairly calm rookie signing period.. more people are focused on Revis..

I see that Spiller at 9 is still unsigned.

His "slotting" has to be pretty much established at tis point. I wonder what the holdup is there?

I'd want Kareem Jackson's agent for sure. $13.35M guaranteed in the 20 spot while some of the others above him got less. Yes, his total might be lower, but it's all about the guaranteed money in the NFL.

Can you imagine what the 1st pick of the draft will command in a few years without a new CBA for rookie salaries? Insane! Hopefully the league and the NFLPA can work it out. I don't see a rookie salary structure being approved without the vets getting the saved money.....why would the owners bother with a rookie cap if they have to turn around and give the money to the vets? The owners are trying to lower salaries....not just move money around.

Bungles sign Gresham

For the Bengals, a holdout from the team's first-round pick has become the rule, not the exception. Few teams like to pay big money based only on potential, and the bargain-hunting Bengals are usually one of the most reluctant franchises when it comes to making an unproven player a multi-millionaire.

This year, the team's first-round pick held out once again. But the holdout has ended. Tight end Jermaine Gresham has agreed to terms.

Receiver Chad Ochocinco broke the news via Twitter, besting the likes of ESPN's Adam Schefter by a minute.

Gresham missed all of 2009 with a torn ACL, an injury that may have caused Gresham to slide a bit, making him available when the Bengals used the 21st overall pick.

As pointed out in our AFC North training camp one-liners, Gresham had been placed at the top of the depth chart, even without signing his contract. We'll see whether he can stay there once he starts practicing.

Lions sign Suh

Ndamukong Suh is ready to sign the damn contract.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the Lions and Suh reached an agreement on a five-year contract today.

Although there's still some contractual language that needs to be worked out, Schefter reports that the total value of the contract will be more than $60 million, or $12 million a year. No word yet on how much of that will be guaranteed, or on whether Suh will end up with a better deal than Matthew Stafford got as the No. 1 overall pick of the Lions a year ago. But suffice to say, Suh will be well compensated.

The Suh signing leaves two first-round picks without contracts, No. 6 overall pick Russell Okung of the Seahawks and No. 9 overall pick C.J. Spiller of the Bills.

UPDATE: Jay Glazer of Fox reports that Suh will make $60 million over five years, with a maximum package of $68 million, and $40 million guaranteed. Stafford got $41 million guaranteed, so Suh didn't do quite as well as the No. 1 pick last year.

Suh's guarantee is $10 million less than the guarantee No. 1 overall pick Sam Bradford got from the Rams. But Suh's deal represents a 21.2 percent increase in guaranteed money over the deal No. 2 pick Jason Smith got in 2009. Bradford's guarantee was only (only?) 19.9 percent greater than the guarantee that Stafford got as the No. 1 overall pick last year.

That's the thing I dislike about top rookie contracts.

Fine .... you want a huge contract ..... OK. But to guarantee $40 million to a guy who has never set foot on the field as a pro is ridiculous.

The sad part is ..... I can remember, not that long ago, when a rookie's only guaranteed money was his signing bonus ..... and even that handcuffed a team if he busted. If you have a bust today with $40 nmillion guaranteed ... you're beat for a long, long time.

A 20% increase each year. They've got to know that's unsustainable. Can you imagine if you got a 20% increase at your job each year?