The 2025 NFL Draft kicked off as expected when the Tennessee Titans picked Miami quarterback Cam Ward first overall, but the night took a turn when the Jacksonville Jaguars traded up from the No. 5 pick to No. 2 to select Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter. The New York Giants then selected Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter.

Overall, Thursday’s first round had only one quarterback selected in the top 10, versus five last year. Additionally, the Las Vegas Raiders used the No. 6 pick to make Boise State product Ashton Jeanty the highest running back taken since Saquon Barkley in 2018.

This year’s first-round draft class is in for a major pay raise, with signing bonuses up 26% across the board, according to someone familiar with the final terms. Signing bonuses represent more than half of the total compensation in first-round rookie contracts. The previous biggest increase under the current rookie slot system was 15% in 2015.

Ward is in line for a four-year, $48.4 million contract, including a $32.2 million signing bonus. Last year, Caleb Williams signed for $39.5 million with a $25.5 million bonus. Williams and the rest of the 2024 first-round picks received bonuses 3.8% higher than the 2023 class, marking the first uptick of more than 1% in rookie bonuses since the 2020 NFL Draft.

The contracts for draft picks are predetermined by a formula typically tied to the NFL salary cap. But the formula has been in flux since 2021, when the cap dropped 8% after a $4 billion decline in 2020 league revenue when games were held under COVID-induced stadium capacity restrictions. The league and players’ union agreed to amend the usual rookie salary formula to not penalize the 2021 draft class.

The compromise was to “borrow money” against future rookie compensation pools to prevent a decline in rookie contracts. The result was a 1% increase for signing bonuses even with the cap down. The system stayed in place in 2022 when the cap rose 14%, and again in 2023 when the cap jumped 8%.

Last year’s cap was $255.4 million per team, a record $30 million increase over the previous year. The increase was from new media deals, as well as the “full repayment of all amounts advanced by the clubs and deferred by the players during the COVID pandemic.”

The 2025 cap is $279.2 million.

The current rookie salary slot system was installed in 2011. Previously, agents and teams haggled over contracts that surpassed what top veteran players earned. Matthew Stafford was the 2009 No. 1 pick and signed for $72 million over six years with the Detroit Lions, while Sam Bradford got $78 million the following year from the then-St. Louis Rams. Cam Newton, the No. 1 pick in 2011, settled for $22 million over four years with the Carolina Panthers.

The 32 first-round picks this year are projected to sign contracts worth a total of $777 million, including $458 million in signing bonuses. The minimum base salary for a rookie will be $840,000 in 2025, up from $795,000 the prior year. The Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles traded the final pick of the first round to the Kansas City Chiefs, who selected Ohio State offensive lineman Josh Simmons at No. 32. Simmons should sign a $14.7 million contract with a $7.3 million signing bonus.

The first-rounders all receive four-year deals, with a fifth-year team option. Nineteen of the 32 picks in the 2021 draft had their options picked up, including all of the top 10 outside of quarterbacks Zach Wilson and Trey Lance, who were picked second and third and traded during their rookie deals.