The standoff between the Cincinnati Bengals and their first-round pick has officially come to a head.
Defensive end Shemar Stewart remains unsigned as of Saturday, the day that the Bengals' rookies must report for training camp, NFL Network Insider Mike Garafolo reported. But with no rookie deal signed, Stewart cannot join that group to report or participate in camp amid an unprecedented contract dispute.
It's been slowly building to this point since April, when the Bengals drafted Stewart at No. 17 overall out of Texas A&M, hoping he could grow into a key figure in a Bengals defense that is light on star power.
However, once the offseason program kicked off, what is usually a simple rookie signing process was revealed to have some kinks to work out in this case. Stewart was not an on-field participant during voluntary workouts or mandatory minicamp, with it later revealed that his sitting out was a result of Cincinnati reportedly attempting to set a new precedent with rookie contracts that would allow the team to void future guarantees. Stewart spoke on the extended wait for a signing at the time, saying he "thought I'd be on the field by now" and was preparing on his own for the season, but would not do on-field work until the contract was worked out. Following that, he skipped the final day of mandatory minicamp entirely.
Stewart officially became the last of the 32 first-round picks still unsigned this week when the Broncos inked cornerback Jahdae Barron. Stewart's own Bengals draftmate, second-round linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr., also signed a rookie deal recently as he put pen to paper on Saturday, according to the team.
Another stage of offseason preparation has arrived with no movement yet, a worrying situation for both Stewart and the Bengals with preseason games starting in fewer than three weeks and the official start to the year a further month away.
When or if the sides are able to come to an agreement in the days ahead, it will not put an end to the Bengals' offseason drama, though. There remains the lingering contract discussions regarding reigning league sack leader Trey Hendrickson, who has been vocal that he either wants an extension or a trade, and that he wouldn't play for the Bengals under his current deal.
