The Ravens are reportedly the only team in the NFL who have yet to wrap up their rookie draft class signings. The lone holdout, Michigan outside linebacker David Ojabo, is the last unsigned rookie selected in the 2022 NFL Draft, with the contract disagreement surrounding Ojabo’s third-year guarantee percentage, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. 
This is a bit of a new issue as, last year, Ojabo’s draft slot didn’t receive any third-year guarantee, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN. This year has seen a difference of approach in the second round, though. The first five picks of the second round this year have received contracts that fully guaranteed the second and third years of their rookie deals. The first three picks of the second round even had some of the fourth year of their contracts guaranteed, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. After those first five picks, the next ten picks (excluding Ojabo) have the second year of their rookie deals guaranteed with a percentage of their third year guaranteed.
There are two factors of the situation that make it difficult for Ojabo and the Ravens to negotiate. The first is that, while picks 38-47 of the draft all have guaranteed third-year money, there is a huge drop off in the guaranteed amount for the pick before Ojabo and the pick after Ojabo. The player selected just before Ojabo at 44th overall is John Metchie III, who received $800,000 (55.61%) of his third year guaranteed, following the descending trend from the 38th pick, Arnold Ebiketie ($1.36MM), down to the 43rd pick, Wan’Dale Robinson ($876,508). The pick immediately after Ojabo at 46th overall is Joshua Paschal, whose guaranteed third-year money dropped dramatically to $275,000 (22.02%).
The extreme contrast from Metchie to Paschal gives far too much wiggle room for Baltimore and Ojabo to disagree on. Ojabo, likely, will want guaranteed third-year money closer to what Metchie is receiving based on being picked just after him. The Ravens’ argument will point to the fact that he plays the same position as Paschal, and it will probably hinge on the second factor that makes it a difficult negotiation, as well: Ojabo’s injury.
Ojabo was trending towards being a first-round pick for much of the pre-draft process before tearing his Achilles tendon at Michigan’s Pro Day. The severity and timing of the injury make it unlikely that Ojabo will be able to make much of an impact as a rookie. Achilles injuries have affected long-term status less and less in the NFL lately, but it can still be a bargaining chip for Baltimore in terms of how much money they choose to guarantee. Ojabo can also try to flip it by pointing out what his draft stock would’ve been without injury.
At this point, it’s hard to make any predictions, but it’s pretty clear where the separation is coming from. The Ravens no doubt want to come to terms with Ojabo, who will eventually be meeting last year’s first round pick, Odafe Oweh, at the quarterback for years to come. But, after being bitten hard by the injury bug last year, it’s easy to see why Baltimore may be uneasy to guarantee payment to a player currently recovering from a serious injury. It will certainly be interesting to see how the situation is resolved.
This headline feels redundantly worded
Your post that doesn’t make sense is a post that exists that doesn’t make sense.
Well yeah, it was written by Perd Hapley
~He’s likely to point out where he would have gotten drafted had he not gotten injured.
Well, he can do that all he wants. The point is, he did get injured, and the Ravens can point out that he would have gotten picked at least one pick later had they selected somebody else, and thus had the $ of the pick after him.
He’s probably going to miss all of the first season anyway, so there’s plenty of time to negotiate.
I think it’s comical that he wants a guarantee on the 3rd year money when he’s expecting to miss some or all of this year. Is he willing to give back money this year for the games he’s not going to play? Of course not. He should be happy he’s getting what they offered.
I’m sick of this entitled greed crap. I cant play this year by I still want paid. And oh, by the way, I want my 3rd year guaranteed as well.
Crap
I’m sure you would be thinking the same thing if you were in his position.
These guys are ruining their bodies for the remainder of their lives to maximize on a finite window of time where they can benefit financially from their unique attributes and skillsets while others within their organizations have no such limitations on their earnings and do not face bodily harm. You can argue that it’s a decision on the part of the player to play the game which is certainly true but then complaining about negotiations and citing greed is pretty hollow.
Let me ask: do you read articles about corporations laying people off or moving jobs overseas and get as angry about greed as you do about one 20-something recent college graduate negotiating for a bit more money on what will likely be the only professional football contract he ever signs?
The argument still stands to your second paragraph. They don’t have to play. They can choose to do something else. If they don’t get the money they want, go do something else and try to earn that much money.
Your last paragraph is a false analogy.
Thanks for taking the time to thoughtfully respond, Ed!
I’m just glad to see you could spare a few minutes since I know you typically spend your Saturdays yelling at clouds.
You must have me confused with the SJWs. Seems like you know as much about me as you do football. I suggest that maybe you leave higher level thinking to the experts before you hurt yourself.
Bruh they are struggling to negotiate on the third year of a deal between the value of 800k and 275k. Like really who cares that much man.
Just draw a line down the middle at 500k and be done with it bruh it ain’t that deep
It’s about setting precedence. You capitulate this year and then it’s expected next year and the year after and so on. So yes it seems arbitrary to argue over that money now, but it does have larger impact in the future.
Tell it too Ojabo….don’t think he’ll want to settle for a “split down the middle”!
Paschal I believe was coming off of injury as well.
What had become a straight forward slotted signing is becoming, through guaranteed contracts, a mess. Not like the old days of wild rookie deals, but a mess due to guaranteed money taking over for total dollars.
There is a part of me that’s nostalgic for the wild signing bonuses the top few picks received. It was a mess but there was a certain amount of comedy in it as well.
Not all first and second round picks live up to expectations but owners get a huge discount on the true market value of those that do. Nickel and diming these guys for a few hundred thousand will almost guarantee there will be no “team friendly” discount a few years down the road when serious money is in play.
Fine, then just don’t pay them anything later down the line. Just refuse to pay whatever they ask. Have all teams do this and then contracts will stop being ridiculous.
The “nickel and diming” you refer to is called “negotiating”…..and by not giving in, they’re saving $millions in the future salary escalations that will be used against them in those future negotiations with newly drafted college players.
An as far as ‘down the line”, most of these drafted players, if they do indeed become sought after guys will jump for $1.00 by a new team anyway so why would a team worry about what might happen 3-5 years in the future…there’s no such thing as loyalty….its a business!
Funny from a team that OVERPAID for Joe Flacco. They worry about $500,000 when they paid millions more a year than any other team would of Flacco.
Flacco deserved it.
Flacco did something Lamar hasn’t done. Take a team deep into the playoffs, win those games, take a team to the superbowl, win it, and get superbowl MVP.
Other teams would have ponied up and paid the farm for him.
Not giving in will save owners $millions in the future? Only in some fantasy world where all 32 owners can control the urge to set a market precedent. If that was achievable there would be no need to establish a salary cap system.
The salary cap isn’t there for players. It is there for competitive balance so you don’t have what happened in MLB where you had the Yankees and everyone else being a farm team for the Yankees simply because the Yankees could afford a $200+ million payroll.
I agree with your first statement. It’s not the players but the owners who are responsible for salary escalations. The cap is an artificial mechanism that attempts to regulate their lack of financial self control. Most owners though have egos just as large as George Steinbrenner’s which is why the cap ceiling is always requiring an upward adjustment.
I think you should read the CBA and about the Player’s Union.
Do you think he may not sign? Maybe play G league?