The New England Patriots made a total of nine selections during the 2018 NFL draft and the antepenultimate of those was invested in quarterback Danny Etling. The Patriots picked with LSU's starter with the 219th selection. But while the team drafted six other players before handing in the card with Etling's name on it, it made him the first one to officially be brought into the fold through a contract signing.
As first reported by CBS Sports' Jason LaCanfora, the Patriots and Etling agreed to a four-year deal. It will become official tomorrow, per a follow-up report by the Boston Globe's Nora Princiotti:
QB Danny Etling agreed to terms today on a 4-year rookie deal with the Patriots, per source. Will sign his contract when he gets in the building tomorrow.
The 23-year old is the Patriots' current number three quarterback behind undisputed starter Tom Brady and Brian Hoyer, last season's lone returning backup. When it comes to practice reps and potentially even a spot on the 53-man roster, Hoyer will be the main competition for Etling, who finished his career at LSU with a completion percentage of 59.7 as well as 4,586 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
With the rookie wage scale being introduced as part of the current collective bargaining agreement, contract negotiations for the majority of draft picks have become rather unspectacular: Etling's four-year deal will be worth a total of $2.56 million with a 2018 salary cap hit of $506,007. According to the Boston Sports Journal's Miguel Benzan, the quarterback is expected to get a signing bonus of $104,028.