Demetrius Knight Jr. signing his rookie contract solves one Bengals problem and gives them needed leverage to solve another one
The Cincinnati Bengals are one step closer to eliminating all of their contract problems for the year. As first reported by Fox Sports' Jordan Schultz, linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr., the Bengals' second-round NFL Draft pick, has agreed to the terms of his rookie contract. 80% of the deal is guaranteed and at least part of […]
The Cincinnati Bengals are one step closer to eliminating all of their contract problems for the year.
As first reported by Fox Sports' Jordan Schultz, linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr., the Bengals' second-round NFL Draft pick, has agreed to the terms of his rookie contract. 80% of the deal is guaranteed and at least part of his fourth-year compensation is guaranteed.
Knight was one of 30 second-rounders who were unsigned entering this week. The holdup was due to the first two picks of the round, wide receiver Jayden Higgins of the Houston Texans and linebacker Carson Schwesinger of the Cleveland Browns, signing fully guaranteed contracts, which was unprecedented outside of the first round. The floodgates soon opened after the San Francisco 49ers signed Alfred Collins to a deal that was only 87% guaranteed.
Collins was the 43rd overall pick and the 11th in the second round. Knight was picked 49th overall, so he was one of several players who lost any leverage to sign a fully guaranteed deal being drafted after Collins.
This is ultimately why the Bengals and Knight came together on a deal the day he and the rest of Cincinnati's rookies are reporting to training camp. There is one other Bengals rookie that needs to sign his contract in order to report, and what happened with Knight may just impact that process as well.
Demetrius Knight Jr. agrees to default language Shemar Stewart doesn't want
Shemar Stewart, Cincinnati's first-round pick, is the other unsigned draft pick. Stewart's holdout has been well documented over the last two months as he refuses to agree to default language the Bengals are now inserting in their contracts. The language would make it easier for future guarantees to be defaulted and is being used by several other clubs in the NFL.
Knight is agreeing to the language Cincinnati that has been offered to Stewart, per The Enquirer’s Kelsey Conway, but the difference is Knight is getting 75% of his signing bonus money up front. Such a percentage has reportedly not been offered to Stewart.
Not many aspects of rookie contracts are negotiable aside from guaranteed money and language surrounding guaranteed money. Knight is the first second-round pick in Bengals history to receive guarantees in his fourth year, so the team included the default language to protect that money for themselves in the case of extreme circumstances such as suspensions. He was able to ask for fourth-year guarantees because while other second-rounders weren't able to get fully guaranteed deals, they were at least able to get a larger percentage of their deals guaranteed.
The signing bonus aspect comes into play as a concession from the Bengals. Knight is getting the majority of his signing bonus right now instead of waiting until the end of the year to receive half of it, which has been standard operating procedure for the club in the past. This wouldn't be the case if Knight didn't have any leverage to ask for fourth-year guarantees in the first place.
UPDATE: Knight's signing bonus payout does not differ from past Bengals second-round picks.
First-round contracts have been fully guaranteed for several years, which is why Stewart's plight has been ongoing since the beginning. He wants the team to take the language out, or at least make a similar concession like Knight received.
In any rate, now that Knight has agreed to the language, the Bengals can use that against Stewart. If one draft pick with fourth-year guarantees agreed to it, he can too. It just may require them to give him more of his signing bonus up front.
Cincinnati getting Knight to sign is a big win on the field as well
While Stewart will have to work his way up the depth chart once he's out on the field, Knight is already a projected Week 1 starter at linebacker. The team drafted him to replace former starter Germaine Pratt, and sure enough, he worked next to starting MIKE Logan Wilson during the offseason program despite not signing his deal.
Knight wouldn't have been able to report to training camp without putting pen to paper, so this ensures defensive coordinator Al Golden will have both of his starting backers for the start of camp.
It's obviously important for Stewart to be out there as well, but Knight is going to be a more important player at least at the start of the regular season. Getting this deal done in time was huge for that reason alone.
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