Asante Samuel Jr. becomes first of nine LA Charger draftees to sign

Former FSU football cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. becomes the first 2021 draftee of the LA Chargers to sign his rookie contract.

The Chargers took Asante Samuel Jr. with the No. 47 overall pick of the second round. I thought Samuel Jr. would go earlier than that after a couple of cornerbacks were taken within the first 15 selections of the draft.

Samuel Jr. was thought to be the No. 4 cornerback in the draft, but team needs and his lack of height and length may have been the largest reason he slid to the Chargers at No. 47.

He joins former FSU standout safety Derwin James in the secondary, and James lobbied the Chargers to pick Asante Samuel Jr.

The four-year deal will be over seven million dollars, which is the going rate for players drafted in that area of the draft. It won’t be the same, but the No. 47 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft was Marlon Davidson.

He signed a four-year 6.9 million dollar deal with the Atlanta Falcons that saw him paid a $2,587,180 signing bonus, $3,511,379 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $1,728,093.

However, the real money is made when players complete their rookie deals and sign their second contracts.

Asante Samuel Jr’s father is a prime example of this as a fourth-round pick of the 2003 NFL Draft. Asante Samuel completed his rookie deal, received the franchise tag for one year before signing a six-year 59.475 million dollar contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Samuel was traded to the Atlanta Falcons and signed the final contract of his career for three years at 14.7 million dollars.

Asante Samuel Jr. can cash in on that second contract if he’s able to stay healthy and became an impact player. He’s done that at every level, and there’s no reason he shouldn’t do it with the Chargers, who have a good defensive coordinator.