Cincinnati Bengals rookie quarterback Joe Burrow won’t put ink to paper with the team that made him the No. 1 pick just yet.
Burrow — set to earn more than any of the 250-plus draftees this year — admitted coronavirus pandemic fallout will prevent him from signing on the dotted line.
The No. 1 pick appeared on the “Pardon My Take” podcast Friday and fired off a one-liner about the situation (h/t ESPN’s Ben Baby).
“We’re just waiting to see what happens over the next three months because we really don’t know,” Burrow said.
This isn’t exactly a shocking development. The coronavirus pandemic makes the outlook for the regular season muddy at best, which could in turn impact revenue. Teams carefully walking the budget rope might prefer to hang on to millions in signing bonuses until things become clearer.
A year ago, No. 1 pick Kyler Murray signed his contract in Arizona on May 9. As of this writing, only one first-round pick has signed his contract.
When Burrow signs, he’ll net a $23.9 million signing bonus. It’s only a matter of time and in the meantime, Burrow went over the offense with the coaching staff before the draft and just had a three-day minicamp, virtually.
