National Personality Mike Florio Shares Possible Disaster Scenario for Shemar Stewart and the Bengals

  NBC Sports Mike Florio laid out this week that Shemar Stewart doesn't have many good options to keep fighting the Bengals on his contract bonus/default language once the season gets closer and closer.

The rules binding draft picks to teams leave him with no other option but to sign the deal or give up this entire season and re-enter the draft. Playing in a different league like the UFL or CFL is an option too. The Bengals could trade him too, but we know how unlikely that is given the history of this franchise.

Cincinnati currently controls his playing rights in the NFL through the 2028 season.

"For Stewart, it’s not about bypassing the draft entirely. It’s about getting the Bengals to relent on their desire to suddenly change their void language for future guarantees," Florio summarized. "If they refuse, and if he won’t blink by the Tuesday after Week 10, he’ll re-enter the draft in 2026. Unless he plays in the CFL or the UFL, which would tie him to the Bengals through 2028.

"To summarize, Stewart can be traded until August 5. He can refuse to sign with the Bengals until the Tuesday after Week 10 and still play in 2025. Or he can sit out all of 2025 (and not return to college or play in another pro league) and re-enter the draft in 2026 for selection by any team but the Bengals."

Here are the four scenarios Florio laid out:

• Refuse to sign and demand a trade
• Wait to sign until the Tuesday after Week 10 and still play in 2025. After that, he can’t play at all in 2025
• Refuse to sign at all until the 2026 draft begins. At that point, he’d re-enter the draft pool.
• Try to return to college for the upcoming season

Florio took an even further in-depth look at each of Stewart's options in the full article here. All in all, none of them are great for the Bengals hope of getting an impact player in the 2025 NFL Draft if he chooses any of these paths.