2010 Rookie Signings On Pace With Last Year's Class
By admin
With fifth-round offensive tackle Ed Wang signing with the Buffalo Bills, the number of 2010 NFL Draft picks to sign/agree to terms has reached 13.
How does that compare to the number of picks who had signed/agreed to terms at this point last off-season? It's pretty close, actually.
Exact dates contracts are signed is generally kept under wraps, which is why you won't see such dates on either of the pages tracking this data (pick-by-pick, team-by-team). A league source informs Mac's Football Blog that, prior to June 1, 2009, fourteen of the then-255* picks in the 2009 NFL Draft had signed or agreed to terms on their first NFL contracts.
*-Supplemental draft choice Jeremy Jarmon was added to the draft class after June 1
Round-by-round list of 2009 NFL Draft picks that signed contracts prior to June 1, 2009:
Round 1
Matthew Stafford, QB, Detroit Lions
Round 2
None
Round 3
None
Round 4
Henry Melton, DE, Chicago Bears
D.J. Moore, CB, Chicago Bears
Round 5
Johnny Knox, WR, Chicago Bears
Scott McKillop, LB, San Francisco 49ers
Marcus Freeman, LB, Chicago Bears
John Nalbone, TE, Miami Dolphins
Round 6
Bear Pascoe, TE, San Francisco 49ers
Al Afalava, S, Chicago Bears
Matt Slauson, G, New York Jets
Round 7
Curtis Taylor, S, San Francisco 49ers
Ricky Jean-Francois, DL, San Francisco 49ers
Lance Louis, G, Chicago Bears
Derek Kinder, WR, Chicago Bears
The Bears were very active in the days leading up to last Memorial Day Weekend, but only have one unsigned pick (third round safety Major Wright) remaining in their 2010 class. It's possible that a team like San Francisco, or a surprisingly proactive New England Patriots' front office, could push the pace in which this year's class is signing ahead of last year's.