Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
By Ross Jackson
As some teams finally begin reporting for training camp this week around the league, one of the boiling points of the NFL offseason is about to reach its peak.
30 of 32 second-round draft picks have not signed their contracts. Not because of anything malicious, as much as some have tried to derive panic from the situation. Instead, this is a simple matter of precedent.
No. 34 overall pick, the second selection of the second round, Houston Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins received the first fully guaranteed second-round contract in league history. Because of that deal, No. 33 overall pick and Cleveland Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger also got a fully guaranteed deal.
Now, the question for picks 34 through 64 isn’t whether they’ll receive fully guaranteed deals, it’s how much of their contracts will be guaranteed.
For the New Orleans Saints and second-round quarterback Tyler Shough, this threatens to cause at least a little bit of a hold up. But shouldn’t be looked at as a major road block or issue.
The Los Angeles Chargers rookies reported for camp on Saturday, all but second-round wideout Tre Harris. This begins the first “hold out,” if you will, of the offseason because of this conundrum.
With Chargers rookies reporting today, there still is no deal for second-round pick Tre Harris.
There’s still time before practices, but the NFL could have an inordinate amount of second-round picks not showing up to the start of camp this year due to disagreements over… https://t.co/nHfMINMyDx
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 12, 2025
It’s important to contextualize that this isn’t the same as a “contract dispute.” Players aren’t fighting for their desire to be paid more or being driven by a want for additional guarantees. This is all about a major change in the market. So bad blood would have to come from other actions. This doesn’t have to be a dramatic moment for the league and its rookies. It’s just a new frontier.
For Shough (the No. 40 overall pick) and the Saints, there’s a chance that this leads to a late report for the quarterback as all second-round selections and their representation should be working in unison to get over this hump.
But, unlike the other second rounders this year, Shough is battling for a starting quarterback position and a chance to become his franchise’s next leader. He is in a uniquely competitive position that others drafted around him are not. Having no desire to give up ground in the competition may be a factor. Though, solidarity is understandable in this case.
ProFootballTalk outlined this issue further from an NFL perspective and also included the percentage of guaranteed money for each second-round draft position from last year’s selection process.
Per their numbers, the No. 40 overall pick last season received 80.46% of their contract guaranteed. Cross-referenced with Spotrac’s contract details, here is that breakdown:
Philadelphia Eagles DB Cooper DeJean
Full contract value: $9,283,622
Guaranteed money: $7,469,987
It’s reasonable to expect that Shough will receive a higher guaranteed percentage than DeJean based on the new environment. But the question of just how much more is what remains to be seen.
The Saints’ rookies and veterans both report on July 22, giving the team (and league, for that matter) time to get things figured out.
