On Saturday, July 19, rookies for the New York Jets are scheduled to report. Mason Taylor’s presence for the green and white is uncertain.
Tre Harris, a rookie wide receiver for the Los Angeles Chargers, was the first official holdout of training camp, according to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport on Saturday, July 12.
“Harris takes the first official stance after 30 of the 32 second-round picks were left unsigned due to a dispute over guaranteed compensation,” Rapoport continued.
Taylor is one of the 30 rookie second-round picks who remain unsigned ahead of training camp.
On social media, NFL expert Alex Katson stated that it will “take a while to resolve league wide.”
R2 contracts are bottlenecked at BOTH ends, which is an underappreciated aspect of this. Deals were fully guaranteed for 34/35, while only 1.5m was guaranteed for 65. 36 and 64 are both stalling because [the] back half of R2 is waiting for things to swell in their direction, Katson clarified.
The Jets’ and the League’s Other Teams’ Fundamental Issue
By offering their second-round pick, Jayden Higgins, a fully guaranteed contract, Texans general manager Nick Caserio appears to have established a new NFL rookie contract precedent. Travis Holmes, a beat reporter for the Jacksonville Jaguars, said on X earlier on Twitter that 30 out of 32 second-round picks haven’t signed yet because they also want fully guaranteed contracts đź’°.
In addition to Caserio, Andrew Berry, general manager of the Cleveland Browns, also boarded that bandwagon. This offseason, UCLA rookie linebacker Carson Schwesinger was selected in the second round and was also given a fully guaranteed contract.
According to ESPN’s Rich Cimini, “the first fully-guaranteed contracts for second-round picks were reportedly given to the top two picks in the round, Cleveland Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger and Houston Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins.”
In NFL history, it has never occurred.
In a way that has never been seen in the history of the sport, the Texans’ contract with Jayden Higgins has seriously hampered signing prospects. We are approaching actual camp, and 30 of 32 are still unsigned,” NFL Media Group’s Lance Zierlein posted on social media.
NFL analyst Brett Kollmann made a joke, saying, “Every other general manager will line up to fight Nick Caserio at Combine next year, lol.”
“30 of 32 2nd rounders unsigned due to guarantees while the league gets hammered about an attempt to collude over QB guarantees. Nothing to look at here,” NFL analyst Justis Mosqueda said.
Jets and Taylor Need to Do What Is Best for Business
Despite not having his contract finalized, Taylor took part in every Jets offseason program since he was selected. Training camp won’t be like that.
The second-round rookies “won’t be practicing (or even [be] present) without signed contracts,” as noted by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
The following are the relevant facts: In 2025, Taylor is a member of the Jets. He will reenter the 2026 NFL draft rather than play out the whole 2025 season.
Given that, it would be wise for the Jets and Taylor to resolve this so he doesn’t miss any important training camp drills.
“The issue is easy to describe, but it is not easy to resolve. No second-round pick had a rookie deal that was completely guaranteed prior to 2025. The problem was established when the Texans offered receiver Jayden Higgins, the second choice in the second round, a fully guaranteed contract, according to Florio.
“The Browns promptly offered a fully guaranteed contract to linebacker Carson Schwesinger, the first choice in the second round. They were left with little option when the athlete was signed to a contract that was fully guaranteed. “No deal has been made for the next 30 picks in round two,” Florio stated.
The real solution is compromise, not total concessions from Taylor or the Jets.
If Taylor doesn’t miss any practice time, he stands the best chance of having an immediate effect. The Jets do not wish to become the next NFL team to be selected in the second round. Reach a compromise, sign the agreement, skip the awkward staredown, and get straight to the point.
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