Under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the NFLPA and NFL owners, rookies signing their initial contract as a professional has become nothing more than a formality. Depending on what round the player was drafted, they are immediately slotted into a pay scale which can’t be negotiated. But that doesn’t mean the entire contract can’t have some negotiations. Players can negotiate signing bonuses as part of their contract, and more often than not players will wait to see what other players sign for to give them some leverage in negotiations.
For the Pittsburgh Steelers, 6 of their 7 rookies have all signed their rookie contracts — except Terrell Edmunds.