The Pittsburgh Steelers annual mandatory minicamp will take place next week and as things stand right now, that event will get underway with the team still needing to sign two of their eight draft picks.
Currently, the Steelers have yet to sign their first-round selection, outside linebacker T.J. Watt, and their first of two third round selections, cornerback Cameron Sutton.
According to NFL.com’s 2017 NFL Draft signing tracker, Watt is currently one of 11 players who were selected in this year’s first-round that remain unsigned. It’s worth noting, however, that the player who was selected after Watt was, linebacker Reuben Foster, signed his rookie contract with the San Francisco 49ers a few days ago. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, Foster’s four-year deal includes a $4.7 million signing bonus and guarantees into the fourth year of the contract.
The player selected this year before Watt, tight end David Njoku, has yet to sign with the Cleveland Browns, however. The holdup with Watt is likely related to offset and guaranteed money payout language and the same probably goes for Sutton as well. In case you’re curious, the players selected before and after Sutton, defensive tackle Montravius Adams and safety Delano Hill, have yet to sign their rookie deals with the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks, respectively.
Recently, former NFL agent and current CBSSports.com contributor Joel Corry wrote about how the rookie wage scale works in addition to offset hurdles. In short, it’s likely only a matter of time before the Steelers have both Watt and Sutton under contract and such transactions should take place long before the team reports to Latrobe for training camp.
