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The Cincinnati Bengals continue to work on signing first-round pick Darqueze Dennard to his first NFL contract. It seems like a layup, as every pick in the draft is slotted into a contract. Dennard is going to sign a 4-year deal worth about $8 million.
So what's the holdup?
It's the amount of guaranteed salary Dennard can get from his contract. Players want to be assured they're getting the money their contract pays them. They want guaranteed money. Dennard wants to know that no matter what happens, he'll get as much of that $8 million as possible in the event he's injured and/or released before the end of his contract.
Here's a look at the amount of guaranteed money players drafted around Dennard will be getting, per NFL.com:
| 17 | C.J. Mosley | ILB | Baltimore Ravens | Signed | 4 years, $8.78M fully guaranteed |
| 18 | Calvin Pryor | FS | New York Jets | Signed | 4 year, $8.5M fully guaranteed |
| 19 | Ja'Wuan James | OT | Miami Dolphins | Unsigned | |
| 20 | Brandin Cooks | WR | New Orleans Saints | Signed | 4 years, $8.38M, $7.60M guaranteed |
| 21 | Ha Ha Clinton-Dix | FS | Green Bay Packers | Signed | 4 years, $8.33M, $7.55M guaranteed |
| 22 | Johnny Manziel | QB | Cleveland Browns | Unsigned | |
| 23 | Dee Ford | DE | Kansas City Chiefs | Signed | 4 years, $8.15M, $6.626M guaranteed |
| 24 | Darqueze Dennard | CB | Cincinnati Bengals | Unsigned | |
| 25 | Jason Verrett | CB | San Diego Chargers | Signed | 4 years, $7.88M, $6.39M guaranteed |
| 26 | Marcus Smith | OLB | Philadelphia Eagles | Unsigned | |
| 27 | Deone Bucannon | SS | Arizona Cardinals | Signed | 4 years, $7.71M, $6.23M guaranteed |
There are other aspects of the contract like offset language, but in the end, his agent is probably pushing for as much of the contract to be guaranteed as possible.
*Editor's Note: We previously had Dee Ford's numbers at 6.24 million guaranteed. The contract actually gives him $6.626 million in guarantees.