The Dallas Cowboys announced on May 18 that second-round pick Sam Williams and third-round pick Jalen Tolbert signed four-year agreements with the team. Only fourth-round pick Jake Ferguson of the nine players drafted in 2022 NFL Draft has yet to sign a rookie contract.
Rookie contracts are restricted by the current NFL Player’s Association and are mandated to be four-year deals. Contract values are also estimated based on the NFL’s salary cap and a rookie contract funding pool that makes it possible to estimate the price of each draftee’s contract. First overall pick Travon Walker, signed by Jacksonville last week, will be the highest-paid rookie. His contract is worth $41.6 million over four years.
The Cowboys’ first-round pick, Tyler Smith, selected 24th overall, signed a contract last week worth $13.38 million over four years. His contract accounts for $2.4 million against the Cowboys’ salary cap and provides a signing bonus of $6.9 million. Drafted as a tackle, the Cowboys are expected to use Smith at left guard. During rookie workouts last week, team staff speaking to the media said Smith was showing encouraging progress at the position.
“It felt good to get it done,” Smith said to the press following signing his rookie contract. “It kind of surprised me. I thought I would be signing a little bit later but I got that done. We are on to business now. No restrictions.”
Currently, Spotrac.com, which is reporting expected and signed contracts for all draftees, indicates that 8 of the 32 first-round draft picks have yet to sign contracts. In contrast, only 13 of the 94 players drafted in rounds five, six, and seven have yet to sign.
According to Spotrac.com, Ferguson stands to earn $4.3 million. He was drafted 129th overall by the Cowboys in the fourth round. None of the players drafted around Ferguson have signed contracts, either. Only two players drafted in the fourth round have signed with teams, the lowest signing numbers of any of the seven draft rounds this year.
Since the NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys have also agreed to terms with 20 undrafted free agent (UDFA) players. According to language in the NFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement, UDFAs must be paid no less than the league minimum, which is slated at $705,000 for the 2022 season. Teams often use signing bonuses and guaranteed earnings to entice rookie free agent selections.
Players who sign UDFA agreements sign a three-year contract rather than the four-year deal provided to drafted players. After those three years, these players become restricted free agents, giving the team leverage to generate a longer-term contract. Drafted players become unrestricted free agents at the conclusion of their four-year rookie contracts.
The Dallas Cowboys’ first opportunity to get close to real game action from their rookie class will come on August 13, when the team will face the Denver Broncos for the first preseason game of 2022. Roster cuts will begin immediately after that contest. The Cowboys will also face the Los Angeles Chargers and the Seattle Seahawks in preseason action before the 53-man roster’s finalization. Dallas opens the 2022 season at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a rematch of 2021’s season opener won by the Buccaneers.
