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Kansas City Chiefs sign two more rookies, but one of the remaining deals could get difficult thanks to pair of AFC teams
© Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Kansas City Chiefs signed a pair of their draft picks to their rookie contracts, leaving just two rookies unsigned. 

According to Tuesday's NFL personnel notice, the Chiefs officially signed third-round draft pick Ashton Gillotte and fourth-round draft pick Jalen Royals to standard four-year rookie contracts. They join first-round pick Josh Simmons, fifth-round pick Jeffrey Bassa, and seventh-round pick Brashard Smith as rookies already under contract for Kansas City. 

The two who remain unsigned are second-round pick Omarr Norman-Lott and third-round pick Nohl Williams. Thanks to a changing precedent, one of those two players could prove more difficult to get under contract. 

New precedent could prove problematic for Chiefs' second-round pick

Things have changed quite a bit since the rookie wage scale debuted in 2011. First-round draft picks have had fully guaranteed contracts in the NFL for several years. Still, things have been muddier regarding guaranteed money and contract structure for second and third-round draft picks, at least until this season.

It all started when the Houston Texans signed second-round WR Jayden Higgins to a fully guaranteed contract. Then, the Cleveland Browns signed second-round LB Carson Schwesigner to a fully guaranteed deal. Do you catch the theme here? Most second-round picks are now vying for fully guaranteed contracts. 

The Chiefs' second-round pick, Tennessee DT Omarr Norman-Lott, was selected much later in Round 2 than Higgens and Schwesinger, at pick No. 63. However, this new precedent allows agents even more negotiating room than they had before on salary guarantees. 

This isn't to say that Norman-Lott won't sign or they'll come to a negotiation crossroads. He just might be one of the last players to sign, given that everyone drafted in the second round will now be trying to get an even bigger piece of the pie, and those selected before him will set the standard for how much he could earn in guaranteed money.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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