German draft pick signs with Vikings, has great reason for signing quickly
Germany's Moritz Boehringer is about to make some serious money playing American football.
By
John Breech
•
2 min read
During the sixth round of the NFL Draft on Saturday, Germany's Moritz Boehringer became the first-ever, foreign-born player without any college football experience to get drafted.
The German must be excited about his first chance to play organized football in America, because on Monday, Boerhinger was part of another first: The rookie became the first 2016 NFL Draft pick to sign a contract.
The Vikings announced on Monday that Boehringer has officially signed his four-year deal that's worth a total of $2.49 million, according to the St. Paul Pioneer-Press. The contract includes $150,000 signing bonus, which should be nice for a German guy who will obviously be looking for an apartment in Minnesota.
.@MoBoehringer becomes the first 2016 draft pick in the NFL to sign a contract.
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) May 3, 2016
MORE: https://t.co/D481a8NAqQ pic.twitter.com/3ZFY3uCJCJ
Of course, there was a reason the Boehringer wanted to get his contract done quickly, and that's mainly because he has to worry about something that most other draft picks don't have to worry about.
Moritz Boehringer on signing: "I wanted to get it done early because of my visa.''
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) May 3, 2016
#Vikings signed Moritz Boehringer quickly because he has to apply for a P-1 visa and to apply you have to show work. Well, he now has a job.
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) May 3, 2016
That's right, Boehringer had to worry about his Visa.
No one knows if Boehringer will actually be any good in the NFL, but if his Pro Day is any indication, he at least has a chance to make Minnesota's roster.
The German put up some impressive numbers t the Florida Atlantic pro day that he attended: Boehringer ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash, had a vertical of 39 inches, a 10-foot-11 broad jump, a 4.10-second short shuttle, 11.15-second 60-yard shuttle, and a 6.65-second three-cone drill. He also had 17 lifts on the bench press. As Will Brinson noted on Saturday, those marks are all within the top five among all wide receivers who tested at the combine.
Boehringer didn't even know what American football was until he was 17, when he watched a YouTube video of Adrian Peterson. The Vikings immediately became his favorite team, and now he's playing for them.
The German has been doing non-stop interviews since he was drafted on Saturday and now, he seems a little overwhelmed.
"It was fun at first, but after a while it got to be too much," Boehringer told the St. Paul Pioneer-Press on Monday.
As for his NFL career, the German has high hopes.
"My ultimate goal is to be the Dirk Nowitzki of the NFL, but it’s a process," Boehringer said. "I’ve got to make the team (first)."
