The Browns have signed their first-round draft pick.
Mason Graham, the No. 5 overall pick in April’s draft, has signed his rookie contract. The University of Michigan defensive tackle gets a four-year, with a fifth-year option the Browns will eventually make a decision on in 2028.
The deal is a fully-guaranteed contract worth $40,874,191 over the initial four years, including a $26.366 million signing bonus. The fith-year option would be set based upon average salaries of other defensive tackles at that time, which changes by year.
Graham, 21, becomes the fifth of the Browns’ seven draft piciks to sign their rookie deal. The team has already signed second-round pick Carson Schwesinger, third-round pick Harold Fannin Jr., fourth-round pick Dylan Sampson and fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders.
The Browns still have two draft picks — second-round running back Quinshon Judkins and third-round quarterback Dillon Gabriel — unsigned. Those players can participate in the offseason program while still unsigned, but not training camp.
The rookie wage scale, which was collectively bargained by the NFL owners and players association in 2011, makes most of these deals formalities. Both Judkins and Gabriel are expected to be signed by the end of the offseason program.
The Browns originally had the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, but they made a draft-night trade to swap spots with the Jacksonville Jaguars, who selected Colorado wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter. Cleveland, along with selecting Graham, received picks No. 36 (second round) and No. 126 (fourth round) in April’s draft and a 2026 first-round pick.
The No. 36 pick was used to select Judkins, the Ohio State running back, while pick No. 126 was used to select Sampson, the running back out of the University of Tennessee. The first-round pick in 2026 gives the Browns more ammunition to potentially chase down a quarterback in the 2026 draft if they feel like none of the younger ones on their roster currently — Gabriel, Sanders or Kenny Pickett — are the answer.
The Browns start OTAs on Tuesday in Berea. They will have three days of OTAs this week and next week, followed by mandatory minicamp June 10-12 before four more days of OTAs are scheduled for June 16-19.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Browns sign Mason Graham to rookie contract
Reporting by Chris Easterling, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
