CINCINNATI – Cincinnati Bengals rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart is in the midst of a contract stalemate with his new team.
Stewart, the Bengals’ first round pick out of Texas A&M in this year’s NFL Draft, has yet to sign his rookie contract with the Bengals due to disputes between the two sides over the contract language. He also hasn’t signed his participation waiver for the Bengals’ mandatory minicamp, which began Tuesday.
“I’ve been (playing football) for most of my whole life, then all of the sudden it’s gone over something very simple to fix,” Stewart [told reporters](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJpEOSanz9w) while seated in front of his locker on Tuesday. “It’s kind of disappointing.
“In my case, I’m 100% right. I’m not asking for nothing y’all never done before. But in y’all case, y’all just want to win the arguments instead of winning more games, in my opinion,” he added.
The 21-year-old Stewart said he’s received support from veteran Bengals players amid his contract dispute with the team.
“It’s made it very easy when the people in your locker room say you’re doing the right things,” Stewart said. “Especially the star players.”
Along with Stewart, the Bengals are also in a contract stalemate with star defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who led the NFL with 17.5 sacks last season. Hendrickson did not attend the Bengals’ mandatory three-day minicamp on Tuesday as he continues to hold out in hopes for a new contract. However, players are subject to fines for each day they miss minicamp, including a $17,462 fine for missing day one, $34,925 for day two and $52,381 for day three, per [NFL.com](https://go.skimresources.com?id=126006X1587346&xs=1&xcust=zmentz|&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nfl.com%2Fnews%2Fbengals-trey-hendrickson-steelers-tj-watt-minicamp-holdout).
“In my case, I’m 100% right, so it should be a no-brainer,” Stewart said of his contract dispute. “And in Trey’s case I think it should be a no-brainer, too. … If I was the GM or I was the owner, take all my money. But I guess they don’t operate like that.”
Cincinnati will play its preseason opener at the Philadelphia Eagles on Aug. 7. The Bengals will open the regular season schedule at the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 7.