Exploring projected contract details of Buckeyes picked in 2023 NFL Draft
COLUMBUS — Six Ohio State players are projected to go in the first round of next year’s NFL Draft. At least, that’s the case in ESPN Draft Analyst Todd McShay’s early mock.
But, this year, six total Buckeyes alums were selected across the seven-round, three-day event in Kansas City. The class was headlined by three top-20 picks: quarterback C.J. Stroud, who went No. 2 to the Houston Texans; offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr., who went No. 6 to the Arizona Cardinals; and wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who went No. 20 to the Seattle Seahawks.
Stroud became the highest-drafted quarterback in Ohio State history. Johnson became the highest-drafted Buckeyes offensive tackle since Orlando Pace went No. 1 overall in 1997. Smith-Njigba became the third Ohio State wideout in the last two years to go in the first round.
The rest of the Buckeyes’ draftees went later than expected, though. Defensive end Zach Harrison was picked by the Atlanta Falcons in the third round, offensive tackle Dawand Jones — at one point expected to be a fringe first-round prospect — fell to the fourth round and center Luke Wypler dropped all the way to the sixth round. Wypler, notably, declared for the draft after just three years at Ohio State.
Where a player is drafted dictates the details of his four-year rookie contract. Teams have specific parameters for how much or how little they can spend on picks, and those ceilings and floors are determined by a player’s draft position.
Millions of dollars represented in the total value of a rookie contract can separate even just a few selections in the draft.
With that in mind, here are the projected contract numbers for each of Ohio State’s 2023 draftees, courtesy of Spotrac.
QB C.J. Stroud
Projected Total Value: $36,279,243
Projected Signing Bonus: $23,384,904
Projected 2023 Cap Hit: 6,596,226
OT Paris Johnson Jr.
Projected Total Value: $28,052,454
Projected Signing Bonus: $17,401,785
Projected 2023 Cap Hit: $5,100,446
WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Projected Total Value: $14,417,307
Projected Signing Bonus: $7,485,314
Projected 2023 Cap Hit: $2,621,329
DE Zach Harrison
Projected Total Value: $5,568,449
Projected Signing Bonus: $1,049,781
Projected 2023 Cap Hit: $1,012,445
OT Dawand Jones
Projected Total Value: $4,632,332
Projected Signing Bonus: $792,332
Projected 2023 Cap Hit: $948,083
C Luke Wypler
Projected Total Value: $4,019,971
Projected Signing Bonus: $179,971
Projected 2023 Cap Hit: $794,993
Takeaways…
It’s noteworthy just how big of a gap there is between the projected total value of a rookie contract for a player picked at No. 6 overall (Johnson, $28,052,454) and that of a player picked No. 20 overall (Smith-Njigba, $14,417,307).
Wypler, by far, has the lowest projected signing bonus of the group at $179,971. Both Wypler and Jones are the only two Buckeyes draftees with projected signing bonuses below $1 million.
Former Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, who was selected No. 1 overall by the Carolina Panthers, has a projected signing bonus of $24,603,688. That’s $1,218,784 more than Stroud’s projected signing bonus.
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