Potential Cowboys rookie holdout wouldn't be a thing in any other year, but here's why it is in 2025 (it's another team's fault)
Though Micah Parsons' contractual situation will receive most of the coverage going into the Dallas Cowboys' 2025 NFL training camp, second-round rookie Donovan Ezeiruaku could hold out when the day comes to report in Oxnard, California, as well. Ezeiruaku's situation is different, however. While Parsons is on the verge of becoming the highest-paid non-quarterback in league […]
Though Micah Parsons' contractual situation will receive most of the coverage going into the Dallas Cowboys' 2025 NFL training camp, second-round rookie Donovan Ezeiruaku could hold out when the day comes to report in Oxnard, California, as well.
Ezeiruaku's situation is different, however. While Parsons is on the verge of becoming the highest-paid non-quarterback in league history, the rookie is simply caught in an NFL-wide standoff between second-round draft picks and the teams that drafted them.
We're diving into why that is, how it will likely end, and why it's another team's fault.
It's not just Ezeiruaku: Second-round draft picks are holding out league wide
As of this writing, 30 of 32 second-round draft picks from the 2025 NFL Draft remain unsigned. Tre Harris from the Los Angeles Chargers—whose training camp already started—officially became a holdout last weekend.
The whole thing started because the 33rd and 34th overall picks received fully guaranteed deals from their respective teams: LB Carson Schwesinger (Cleveland Browns) and WR Jayden Higgins (Houston Texans).
That has created a predictable effect: Those picked after him also want fully guaranteed deals. If their class peers got them. why not them, too? While contract values are predetermined by the Collective Bargaining Agreement, guarantees can be negotiated.
But it's not just that players and their agents want fully-guaranteed deals because the top guys got them. It's rather that they might have a case because of a specific situation.
Second-round draft picks have a case because of QB Tyler Shough and the Saints
Most NFL teams can likely prep for the 2025 season without their second-round rookies in training camp without batting an eyelash. Not that it's ideal—some of these teams including the Cowboys really need help from their rookies—but the trade-off of setting a precedent for fully-guaranteed deals is not worth the hassle.
The problem is that the Saints are expected to start their second-round quarterback: Tyler Shough. That naturally gives him unique leverage.
According to former sports agent Joel Corry from CBS Sports, Shough's deal is the one domino everyone is expecting to fall:
"The second-round signings have come to a grinding halt because of 40th overall pick Tyler Shough, who was the eighth player selected in the round. According to sources, Shough is insisting on a fully guaranteed contract since he is expecting to be the New Orleans Saints' starting quarterback for the 2025 regular-season opener with Derek Carr recently retiring."
Though Shough's deal wouldn't guarantee every other rookie picked in the second round a fully-guaranteed deal, it would sure provide leverage for the large group of players.
The agents representing the players taken with the third through seventh picks in the second round are in a holding pattern given that they are well aware of Shough's contract demands. This is because of the NFLPA keeping the agents abreast of key developments in a draft round that could potentially impact the players they represent.
How will it end? Cowboys have good reason to believe Donovan Ezeiruaku will show up to training camp
It's impossible to know for sure but my educated guess is many of this year's second-round draft picks will end up caving. After all, many of them need the reps in training camp.
Consider Ezeiruaku's case: The Cowboys rookie edge rusher could be legitimately battling for a starting role in camp. If he stays away, it will give Marshawn Kneeland, Sam Williams, and Dante Fowler Jr. an obvious advantage for the role.
He has more to lose than the Cowboys do. When camp starts, Ezeiruaku and others in the same situation will likely pressure their agents, which is what front offices are probably waiting for.
For now, it's all about waiting. For fans, for teams, and for the players waiting to start their football careers.
