For all of the additional fame and notoriety that comes with being a member of an NFL Draft class, it still pays to be an undrafted free agent. In 2023, ESPN’s Michael Rothstein highlighted the upward trend in total dollar amounts that teams were spending on UDFA contracts.
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Base salary guarantees for UDFAs went from $8,787,100 in 2020 to more than doubling to $14,902,500 in 2022. According to ESPN, the Dallas Cowboys, Jacksonville Jaguars, New Orleans Saints, and Philadelphia Eagles spent more than $1 million on base salary guarantees for UDFAs in 2022.
They might not be good enough to be picked in the Draft, but now, two years later, free agents are netting multi-year, multi-million dollar deals. New York Jets’ newest DB, Jordan Clark, is the latest free agent to benefit from this inflation.
A second-generation player who was fathered by the former Pittsburgh Steeler, Ryan Clark, Jordan recently inked a three-year, $2,985,000 contract just hours after the conclusion of the 2025 NFL Draft. With an average salary of $995,000, he’s now outpacing his fellow classmate and the Chicago Bears’ latest backup QB, Austin Reed.
Reed signed as an UDFA with the Bears after going undrafted in 2024. He signed a reserve/future contract with the team this January.
For all of the concerns surrounding inflation in the quarterback market, Reed’s $840,000-contract is only good for one year, putting him in a rather uncomfortable position to start his career. He hasn’t been afforded the time to develop his skillset the way Clark has in New York, so the Conference USA product will need to show some flashes on the practice team should he hope to extend his tenure.
According to Spotrac, there are currently 297 total cornerbacks on the NFL’s payroll. After spending the last six years in college, Clark will immediately be one of the top 200 highest-paid secondary defenders in the league.
Considering that he’ll also be joining a defense that features the likes of Sauce Gardner, Michael Carter, and Quinnen Williams, the Jets appear to be setting Clark up for all of the potential success that he could ask for. Given the lack of depth at the safety position — a problem that the franchise is actively trying to resolve — there will certainly be no shortage of opportunities for both learning and competing throughout the summer.
With 14 pass defenses and 87 combined tackles throughout his final two seasons in the FBS, Clark managed to display both a scrappy attitude along a good pair of eyes and a propensity for tracking the ball, three things that have been hard to come by in New York at times. From going undrafted to landing with a team that can provide him with immediate opportunities as a rookie, Clark’s story is already reminiscent of his father’s.
He’ll likely take pride in the fact that he was already able to beat out his dad’s first contract, but it will take a tremendous amount of discipline before he manages to outdo his father’s 13-year stint that includes a Lombardi trophy. Nevertheless, Clark’s future seems bright and secure, and that’s all that any of us could ever ask for.
