Shemar Stewart isn't the only 2025 first-round pick yet to finalize his contract, though his well-chronicled stalemate with the Cincinnati Bengals has garnered unwanted attention. Neither side appears willing to budge on their current stance. However, in this instance, the team is at fault and only hurting itself.
Per Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, the standstill between Stewart and the Bengals comes down to "one remaining issue." You're probably wondering: What lone problem is preventing the talented young defensive end from putting pen to paper and officially joining Cincinnati?
Florio's intel suggests the Bengals are trying to pull a fast one on Stewart, but the Texas A&M product isn't budging. Not a great start to a business relationship, to put it mildly. This could've all been avoided -- Cincy is mucking things up and complicating matters more than it should.
Bengals are clearly in the wrong amid contract stalemate with first-round rookie Shemar Stewart
Cincinnati and Stewart are "haggling over language regarding the potential voiding of his future guarantees," Florio wrote. The Bengals want to include a term that may impact the guaranteed money on rookie deals, which differs from how they've previously operated. However, their Day 1 selection last year, offensive tackle Amarius Mims, wasn't subject to this.
Mims has what Stewart is looking for. Why can't the Bengals appease the latter? The former isn't the only one exempt from Cincy's tactics, let alone the most recent.
The "key phrase" Stewart's reportedly fighting isn't found in the extensions Cincinnati handed to wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins this offseason. The promising edge rusher is the first player the Bengals are attempting to implement this on, but he merely wants consistency.
Only one spot on their respective draft boards separates Mims and Stewart, yet the Bengals satisfied one of their demands but not the others. It's a bad look for Cincinnati, especially because rookie contract values increase annually and are fully guaranteed regardless. But then again, knowing who we're dealing with here, this shouldn't come as much of a surprise.
Trying to fleece an incoming rookie is par for the course for the Bengals, a franchise that has been among the NFL’s most frugal. Owner Mike Brown is notoriously stingy when it comes to spending money. He was on the record in July 2024, saying "you can't just pay people willy-nilly" amid Cincy's now-resolved impasse with Higgins. We wish Stewart the best of luck and hope he gets all the bells and whistles when/if this situation is resolved.