Shemar Stewart's NFL career can finally begin.
The rookie defensive lineman's lengthy holdout appears to be over as Stewart and the Cincinnati Bengals have reportedly agreed to a four-year, $18.97 million deal, per ESPN's Adam Schefter on Friday.
According to Schefter, the contract will be fully guaranteed and include a $10.4 million signing bonus.
Stewart, 21, was the No. 17 overall pick by Cincinnati in the 2025 NFL draft. The six-foot-six DL spent three seasons at Texas A&M.
He was the last unsigned first-round pick until coming to an agreement with the Bengals on Friday. Now, Browns second-round RB Quinshon Judkins is the lone remaining draft pick without a deal.
Stewart's reasons for holding out stemmed from the type of language originally being used by the team in his rookie deal.
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, both sides compromised to find common ground on a contract. Stewart agreed to the new language used by Cincinnati in the deal, and the Bengals also moved $500,000 of the rookie's signing bonus up front instead of paying it out in December like originally scheduled.
With the issue now resolved, the youngster — who had merely been a spectator throughout the off-season leading up to the start of training camp this week — can now get ready to take his first NFL practice reps.
Stewart and the Bengals getting a deal done stands as progress, but it is not the end of all holdouts in Cincinnati. Star DE Trey Hendrickson, last year's NFL sacks leader, has yet to make an appearance at camp as he looks for a new deal.
The Bengals (9-8 last season) finished 25th in the league in total defence (348.3 yards allowed per game) and lost four games last season in which they scored at least 30 points.
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