Much has been made about the ongoing saga that is the Cincinnati Bengals and their first-round pick, Shemar Stewart. From claiming he’s being greedy to folks claiming the Bengals will trade him away just to get out from under it, nobody knows what’s going on. Could the Bengals trade away Stewart? Absolutely. Could Joe Burrow come out with a line of shampoo with that photoshopped picture of him with Anakin Skywalker-like hair that keeps resurfacing? Just as likely. Of all of the likelihoods, it’s most likely that this spills into the season, he goes unsigned, and re-enters the NFL Draft. The fact that this would be a lose-lose for both parties is why this needs to get done.
While this saga has been uglier than most, it’s not unprecedented. Whether it’s due to how the Bengals do their rookie deals or it’s just part of the business of the NFL, Stewart’s situation is not unique.
The Cincinnati Bengals’ Drama With Their First-Round Pick Is Nothing New
The Bengals are not the only team in the NFL that is frustrating to deal with. Stewart is going to make $18,969,276 over the course of the next four years. He can thank the Los Angeles Chargers for that because the set sliding salary in the current CBA is due to how cheap the Chargers were for years. There was a reason Eli Manning refused to play for them when he was drafted.
Of course, this does not absolve the Bengals. They are notorious in their own way. However, when it comes to the disputed language in the proposed contract is not exactly unique to the Bengals. The team is looking to add a default language into the contract so that if Stewart were to mess up off the field, his guarantees could be voided.
It’s not unique to Cincinnati, but it wasn’t in Amarius Mims’ contract, hence the frustration.
The Holdout is Nothing New
As of June 16, three first-round picks remain unsigned: Stewart, Travis Hunter, and Jahdae Barron. Meanwhile, 30 second-round picks remain unsigned.
Of course, Stewart is a bit more vocal and is actually holding out. Much has been made about his holdout, considering that now, he’s missed rookie camp, OTAs, and mandatory minicamp. For a while, he was on the sidelines taking mental reps, but he left mandatory minicamp early last week.
However, his remaining unsigned on June 16 is not new. Since 2010, five Bengals first-round picks took more time than Stewart to put ink to paper: Tyler Eifert (July 15), Amarius Mims (July 22), Joe Burrow (July 28), A.J. Green (July 28), and Jermaine Gresham (August 3).
Why is so much attention being paid to Stewart’s holdout when it’s not even close to the longest such event? There’s one thing standing between him and suiting up for the Bengals.
No, the Bengals will not trade him. Stewart will not re-enter the NFL Draft. Imagine that discourse. He was nowhere near a first-round grade for a number of experts due to his lack of any semblance of productivity in college. Now, add in a full year away from the game, and he’d be a late-round flier at best.
Stewart is getting terrible advice. The Bengals are being needlessly cheap and combative. Both points can be true.
Of course, through all of this, Stewart had it correct. The Bengals are absolutely more concerned with winning arguments or negotiations than they are winning games.
Main Image: Frank Bowen IV/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The post The Cincinnati Bengals’ First-Round Pick Drama Is Nothing New appeared first on Last Word on Pro Football.