Patriots down to one unsigned draft pick, following NFL trend

With still a month to go until the start of training camp, the New England Patriots are almost done signing their 2025 draft class. The team got one step closer over the weekend with safety Craig Woodson signing his deal.

As a fourth-round pick (106th overall), Woodson's deal comes in at $5.2 million over four years. Woodson's cap hit will start at $1.1 million this year and rise to $1.5 million by the end of the contract following the 2028 season.

The overall amount of the deal - like every draft pick's contract - is pre-set by the rookie wage scale. However other elements of the contract can be negotiated, which may explain why second-round pick running back TreVeyon Henderson is the lone member of the Patriots' draft class left unsigned.

As of Tuesday morning, 34 of the 257 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft remain unsigned. Of those 34, 30 were second-round picks.

The only two second-round picks who have signed were Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger and wide receiver Jayden Higgins, who were the top two picks in the round. What made those contracts unique is they are the first two fully-guaranteed contracts for a second round pick.

Now the question is, how far down the draft board will that trend continue? Safety Nick Emmanwori of the Seahawks was the third pick in the second-round, and according to SI's Albert Breer he is also looking for a fully guaranteed contract.

There is also another running back just ahead of Henderson and the Patriots, with the Browns having taken his Ohio State teammate Quinshon Judkins 36th overall - two picks prior. As Breer noted on Monday, with the Browns having already handed out one fully-guaranteed second-round contract, Judkins might expect his own. At the same time, could the running back position - which has been devalued by teams around the league - be the trend-breaker?

One other player to watch in this saga is quarterback Tyler Shough, who was drafted by the New Orleans Saints two picks after Henderson. Shough might have extra leverage as there's a decent chance he opens the season as the Saints' starting QB following the retirement of Derek Carr. If he turns that into a fully-guaranteed deal, would it force the hands in the negotiations of the five remaining unsigned players picked ahead of him in the second round?

While there is some uncharted territory in these negotiations, the Patriots and other teams have time to figure things out. Even in normal years, players have sometimes not signed until the week before training camp.