Former Washington running back Salvon Ahmed received a $10,000 signing bonus from the San Francisco 49ers after signing as an undrafted free agent.
Former Notre Dame wide receiver Chris Finke received $15,000. As did former Baylor running back JaMycal Hasty.
Not too bad for putting pen to paper, right?
Former North Central quarterback Broc Rutter (6-2, 204) received a slightly lower amount. His signing bonus for joining San Francisco as an undrafted free agent was $279, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Why the minuscule amount? That's all that was left from the allotted money designated for undrafted free agent rookies after the 49ers were done signing the others.
"They gave him a peculiar signing bonus of $279," Pelissero said. "It turns out the original deal included no bonus, but when the 49ers were done signing all their undrafted rookies, they had 279 bucks left over and decided, 'Hey, give it Rutter. Let him take his family out to dinner.'
"His agent, Mike McCartney, told me after he direct deposits it, he better frame it. It might be the smallest ever."
The #49ers had spent all but $279 of their undrafted rookie bonus pool last weekend ... so they gave Division III QB Broc Rutter an unexpected welcome to the NFL gift. @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/EPpT0sS3nD
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) May 1, 2020
Rutter passed for 8,118 yards, 86 touchdowns, and threw just eight interceptions in his final two years with the Cardinals, and last season led the team to its first national championship (D-III).
Last December, Rutter earned the Gagliardi Trophy as the most outstanding player at the NCAA Division III level. He owns the Division III record for career passing yards with 14,265.
Rutter told CBS Chicago that he knew San Francisco was interested in him since his junior year and kept in touch throughout his senior season. He was able to work out for the 49ers during Northwestern's and Northern Illinois' pro days — before the workouts were shut down due to coronavirus concerns.
"They were there and got to see me throw in person there, and that really helped me a lot," Rutter said. "49ers coach Kyle Shanahan is one of the best with quarterbacks in the NFL. We really just thought this would be such a great opportunity for me going in and learning and seeing how they do things, and this is the best place for me to develop my game into an NFL quarterback."
H/t to Kyle Madson of Niners Wire for the find.
