Earlier this week we told you the Seattle Seahawks could find themselves at the center of a fascinating rookie contract situation. As of Wednesday morning, it would appear they’re very much there.

Rost: What we can and can’t learn from Seahawks training camp

Seattle’s rookies reported to camp Tuesday ahead of next week’s first day of training camp. Noticeably absent, at least from social media posts, were their 2025 NFL Draft second-round picks: safety Nick Emmanwori and tight end Elijah Arroyo. Arroyo’s last social media post, which was an Instagram story Tuesday, came from Miami. He was getting a workout in, but very much not in Seattle.

For a very quick refresher on the situation: the league’s second-rounders are looking for fully-guaranteed contracts. The Houston Texans signed their second-round pick wide receiver Jayden Higgins to a fully guaranteed $11.7 million contract – the first time in NFL history a second round pick got a fully guaranteed deal – and that’s now created a wave of potential holdouts.

Higgins was the 34th overall pick, meaning the 33rd overall pick (Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger) fairly received that fully guaranteed contract as well. Next in line is 35th overall pick Nick Emmanwori… and 29 others. Because as of Wednesday, 30 of 32 second round rookies remain unsigned. And it’s not likely anyone’s budging until Seattle either does, or doesn’t, give a fully guaranteed deal to Emmanwori.

But… should they?

It’s a privilege and a dream to play in the NFL, but every person wants job stability. Sure, teams want to know a player will be worth it before giving him the reward of a new contract three to four years in, but players – who have already shown enough to earn the job via getting selected in the draft – want assurance and to guarantee what, for many, could be their best payday. There aren’t as many lottery tickets here, either: in Emmanwori’s case, he was just three picks away from being a first-rounder and getting that fully guaranteed contract.

Will this make history?

Yes, probably.

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell thinks it’ll be a mixed bag wherein some second-rounders are able to secure those deals and other teams refuse to budge.

“At the end of the day, it all seems to stupid to me,” Barnwell told us Tuesday on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy. “These are guys who are already on bargain deals relative to what veterans make. I know they don’t all hit, but the ones who do hit are such bargains that it’s worth it. NFL teams pay millions of dollars when they get an opportunity to trade for a second, third, fourth-round pick as part of a salary dump, so clearly they see it as being significantly valuable. Guaranteeing a little more money to get your guy in camp seems like a really logical and simple thing for me.”

Other factors at play

• Seattle has typically been a team that hasn’t budged. They typically don’t guarantee money late into veteran deals, much less for rookies. Granted, the money Sam Darnold would command in year two is significantly more than what a rookie safety would get. Keep in mind these players aren’t asking for record-breaking numbers, just guarantees.

• The player’s union might not be for all players here. In theory, the union represents the interests of the players, but what about when players have conflicting interests? Veterans have more power in the union, more power in the league, and technically, their pockets benefit from rookies accounting for paltrier sums.

NFLPA denies tension, says executive director wasn’t asked to resign

• What about shorter deals? If the players union does get involved, campaigning for shorter contracts for rookies could be a middle ground solution here. Teams absolutely won’t love paying more for players two years into a deal, but they’ll at least have a brief understanding of what their player looks like in the pros. This should be especially intriguing for rookie running backs, many of whom enter into a veteran deal with wear and tear.

More on the Seattle Seahawks

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• Seattle Seahawks’ defense can be elite, even without slew of stars