A group of new football players will join the NFL on Thursday night as the league holds its annual draft.
Unlike last year when it was known that quarterback Trevor Lawrence would be the No. 1 overall selection for months, the 2022 NFL Draft remained mysterious as to which top college player will go first. Georgia pass rusher Travon Walker ended up being picked first, followed by Michigan star Aidan Hutchinson in a defense-heavy first round.
For draftees, the team drafting them has a major influence on how they develop as NFL professionals, and the spot they’re picked in can have a big impact on their bank accounts.
What number draft pick a player is determines how much money he will earn on his rookie contract. This is due to the NFL’s rookie wage scale, which assigns dollar amounts to specific draft slots. The higher a player is drafted, the more lucrative his overall contract and signing bonus are.
Therefore, dropping a few spots during the draft can actually cost players millions of dollars on their rookie contracts.
Here are the estimated contracts and signing bonuses for the first round selections of the 2022 NFL draft, according to sports contract monitoring site Spotrac. Each player selected in the first-round gets a four-year contract, and only signing bonuses are guaranteed.
Pick No. 1
Total contract value: $41.4 million, signing bonus: $27.3 million
Pick No. 2
Total contract value: $39.6 million, signing bonus: $25.9 million
Pick No. 3
Total contract value: $38.4 million, signing bonus: $25.1 million
Pick No. 4
Total contract value: $37 million, signing bonus: $24.1 million
Pick No. 5
Total contract value: $34.6 million, signing bonus: $22.4 million
Pick No. 6
Total contract value: $30.4 million, signing bonus: $19.3 million
Pick No. 7
Total contract value: $27 million, signing bonus: $16.8 million
Pick No. 8
Total contract value: $23.6 million, signing bonus: $14.4 million
Pick No. 9
Total contract value: $23.5 million, signing bonus: $14.2 million
Pick No. 10
Total contract value: $22.5 million, signing bonus: $13.6 million
Pick No. 11
Total contract value: $21.5 million, signing bonus: $12.5 million
Pick No. 12
Total contract value: $19.1 million, signing bonus: $11 million
Pick No. 13
Total contract value: $18.6 million, signing bonus: $10.7 million
Pick No. 14
Total contract value: $17.7 million, signing bonus: $10.1 million
Pick No. 15
Total contract value: $17.4 million, signing bonus: $9.8 million
Pick No. 16
Total contract value: $16.4 million, signing bonus: $9.1 million
Pick No. 17
Total contract value: $16 million, signing bonus: $8.8 million
Pick No. 18
Total contract value: $15.6 million, signing bonus: $8.5 million
Pick No. 19
Total contract value: $15.4 million, signing bonus: $8.37 million
Pick No. 20
Total contract value: $15.3 million, signing bonus: $8.31 million
Pick No. 21
Total contract value: $15.2 million, signing bonus: $8.2 million
Pick No. 22
Total contract value: $15 million, signing bonus: $8.1 million
Pick No. 23
Total contract value: $14.8 million, signing bonus: $8 million
Pick No. 24
Total contract value: $14.5 million, signing bonus: $7.7 million
Pick No. 25
Total contract value: $14.3 million, signing bonus: $7.6 million
Pick No. 26
Total contract value: $14.2 million, signing bonus: $7.5 million
Pick No. 27
Total contract value: $14 million, signing bonus: $7.39 million
Pick No. 28
Total contract value: $13.9 million, signing bonus: $7.33 million
Pick No. 29
Total contract value: $13.2 million, signing bonus: $6.8 million
Pick No. 30
Total contract value: $12.9 million, signing bonus: $6.5 million
Pick No. 31
Total contract value: $12.6 million, signing bonus: $6.3 million
Pick No. 32
Total contract value: $12.4 million, signing bonus: $6.2 million
The NFL Draft begins on Thursday at 8 p.m. EST and will air on ESPN, ABC, NFL Network.
