West Virginia University center Zach Frazier was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the NFL Draft on Friday night. That locks him in for a four-year rookie contract, and quite a bit of money guaranteed to come his way.
According to Spotrac, Frazier, as the No. 51 overall pick in the draft, is expected to earn $7,386,239 over the course of his four-year deal. Of that, $2,191,810 of that money is guaranteed in the form of a signing bonus. The rest is spread out the four years as part of his annual salary. It’s estimated that his salaries would bring down like so:
The 2024 NFL Draft‘s feeder class of elite high school talent was the 2021 cycle, which was wrecked by the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. High school seasons were canceled or shortened, in-person visits were wiped out and evaluation opportunities were few and far between.
Even so, the recruiting industry churned out another terrific reminder Thursday night that stars really do matter.
Seven former five-star recruits were selected, including No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams, who won the 2022 Heisman Trophy. Each of the five-star prospects who were selected in the first round were members of the 2021 class. The first night also featured a staggering 15 four-star recruits hear their names called, meaning over two-thirds of all selected players were blue-chippers. That is quite impressive.