Shemar Stewart breaks silence on why he remains unsigned by Bengals and the obstacle preventing him from practicing

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By John Sheeran | Last updated May 20, 2025 8:37 PM ET

Cincinnati Bengals rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart remains unsigned and a passive bystander at Cincinnati's voluntary workouts.

It was reported last week that Stewart's holdout spurred from how much of his contract will be paid out through training-camp roster bonuses, but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

New details, as provided by Stewart himself, indicate the conflict involves something further in the details, and it's not just his future at stake.

Shemar Stewart clears the air about contract dispute

Stewart is far from the only unsigned first-round pick this year, but he's the only one not practicing with his team. He explained the reason why following Tuesday's workout.

"I'm not asking for anything crazy," Stewart told ESPN's Ben Baby. "I'm not even asking for nothing. I just want things to be consistent. I just want consistent language as in the past contracts. I just won't practice until I get that."

It's not the value of the Stewart's contract that's in question, but the language that involves guaranteed money. The training-camp roster bonus problem has been put to the side while an issue of language that differs from contracts signed by the Bengals' previous first-round picks like Myles Murphy and Amarius Mims.

Early in the process, the dispute centered on the amount of salary paid out as a training camp roster bonus, a source told ESPN. But as other first-round picks have signed deals across the league, that issue has subsided. Now, however, the dispute has shifted toward contract language that appears to be materially different from deals given to Cincinnati's previous first-round picks. According to a source, the conflict stems from wording that could potentially affect the guaranteed money on the rookie deals, which would set a precedent for future Bengals contracts. - ESPN's Ben Baby

This matches a report from Cincinnati.com's Kelsey Conway, which states Stewart is pushing for a contract that mirrors the deals Mims and Murphy signed in terms of language.

Both reports paint a similar picture. Stewart doesn't want to sign his deal and have his guaranteed money impacted in ways that won't affect Murphy and Mims, and signing the deal as is would give the team precedent for how future first-round picks have to navigate rookie contract negotiations.

If this is indeed the case, then good on Stewart and his camp for taking a stand and not signing. Not practicing is another story, but if it helps the 21-year old get his point across, then it's a noble effort on his part.

This is just one side of the story, and the exact details of the offer in front of Stewart are unknown at this time, but the conflict should be relatively easy to resolve. If all it takes is for the club to reword the language and match precedent that was already established prior to Stewart being drafted, this issue shouldn't go on for much longer.

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

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