By Ross Jackson
NEW ORLEANS, La. – Three-quarters of the New Orleans Saints’ rookie draft class now have signed deals, the team announced on Friday.
The first day of rookie minicamps often serves as the early signing date for drafted rookies, and that proved true again for the Saints as they opened rookie camp Friday morning. The Saints have officially signed the following players:
- Texas OT Kelvin Banks Jr. (first-round pick)
- Oklahoma LB Danny Stutsman (fourth-round pick)
- Louisville CB Quincy Riley (fourth-round pick)
- Kansas RB Devin Neal (sixth-round pick)
- UCLA TE Moliki Matavao (seventh-round pick)
- Syracuse EDGE Fadil Diggs (seventh-round pick)
Without much surprise, the day two selections (quarterback Tyler Shough, defensive tackle Vernon Broughton and safety Jonas Sanker) have not yet signed their contracts. However, this is to be expected.
https://x.com/Saints/status/1920952438523089294
Second-round picks usually take awhile to get done because of different negotiation factors between the team and the player’s representation. Among those factors is often the amount of guaranteed money baked into the deal.
This year, the NFL saw its first ever fully-guaranteed second-round contract, which is likely to further complicate the matter. The Houston Texans guaranteed 100% of wide receiver and No. 34 overall selection Jayden Higgins’ second-round deal. That’s likely to add some level of complexity to the negotiations of other day two selections, but all will fall into place eventually as is often the case.
Despite Shough, Broughton and Sanker not having signed their deals yet, all three were present and participating during the first day of rookie minicamp.
Rookie work ⚜️ pic.twitter.com/NOzPYUFTRd
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) May 9, 2025
The Saints will continue rookie minis through Sunday with media present on Saturday.
