Why almost none of the NFL’s second-round picks have signed

NFL training camps are starting to kick off, and there is one big storyline that is going to be worth watching in the coming days and weeks. Almost none of the league’s second-round draft picks have signed contracts, and now we officially have our first holdout in that group as the Los Angeles Chargers reported this weekend without second-round pick Tre Harris.

He is likely to just be the first of many holdouts.

This is relatively uncharted territory for NFL teams, especially as it relates to second-round picks, and there is a very specific reason why none of them have signed.

It’s all about guaranteed money.

Fully guaranteed money, to be more specific. 

The only two second-round picks that have signed so far are the first two picks from the round, Cleveland Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger and Houston Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins.

Both players — and their teams — were trendsetters in a way by agreeing to fully guaranteed contracts, something that was previously never really an option or consideration for second-round picks. 

Now that two of them have started down that path, the others are presumably hoping to follow suit. So far, they are not having any success with it, and it is going to be fascinating to see who blinks first, the players or the teams. 

Guaranteed money is one of the big things NFL players want in their contracts, and not many players get the benefit of having a fully guaranteed contract, no matter how much they have accomplished or how good they are. That is especially true when they are second-round picks that have never played a game in the NFL.

From an owner’s perspective, they have successfully avoided having to pay fully guaranteed contracts in every single CBA negotiation in recent years, so it is not likely a path they want to go down as a group. Anything that gets players closer to that is probably going to cause some issues for them.

Now both sides are stuck in a waiting game, and the clock is ticking as training camps start this week.