Shemar Stewart Reportedly Has 'Thought About' CFB Return amid Bengals Contract Rumors

Shemar Stewart is not going to play for Texas A&M during the 2025 college football season, but the Cincinnati Bengals' first-round pick has reportedly at least thought about it.

"I checked on this because there were some rumors online about whether he would opt out and play in college," ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said Wednesday on NFL Live (5:25 mark). "I'm told it is unlikely. He wants to be in Cincinnati, but he has at least thought about like, 'do I go get a huge NIL deal somewhere, play a year in college?' Cincinnati would still own his rights. That would be complicated and messy. He wants to be a Bengal."

Cincinnati selected him with the No. 17 overall pick of the 2025 NFL draft, but he remains the only first-round pick from his class who has yet to sign his deal.

That he was working out at Texas A&M turned some heads, but Kelsey Conway of the Cincinnati Enquirer reported he was just working out at his former college's facilities and not with the football team itself.

"Stewart lives in Texas when he's not in Cincinnati," she explained. "It's common for rookies to return to their college during the offseason to train early on in their careers."

As Conway reported, the Bengals and Stewart have not come to terms on an agreement because of a dispute about future guarantees. As a result, he didn't participate in the team's voluntary offseason program ahead of the start of training camp Saturday.

Nikhil Mehta of Pro Football Rumors and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk pointed out that NCAA rules prevent Stewart from playing again in college after he entered the NFL as a draft pick, so this isn't the start of his return to the Aggies even if it is something that crossed his mind in today's era of name, image and likeness in college football.

That means all eyes are on whether the Bengals can reach an agreement that works for both sides.

Jason Owens of Yahoo Sports stressed "there's very little to negotiate in rookie contracts" given the wage scale in place for first-round draft picks. That seemingly puts him in line to sign a four-year, $18.9 million contract with a fifth-year option.

However, Owens noted "the Bengals are seeking to set a new precedent with rookie contracts that allows the team to void future guaranteed money. Stewart's understandably not on board with this and has gone public with his grievances."

Last month, he told reporters it is "very important" he is on the field for training camp ahead of his rookie campaign:

The two sides may still be far apart, but reaching a deal before training camp is still far more likely than him playing again in college. Florio suggested that Stewart could potentially challenge the NCAA in court under antitrust laws in an effort to get around the current rules preventing a return.

He also posited that such an attempt could give him more leverage in negotiations with the Bengals if they were worried about how things would unfold in court.

That would be quite a drastic step, though, even if the situation isn't what Cincinnati fans want to see.