By Aaron Wilson
The Baltimore Sun
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Former Dunbar star Tavon Austin has signed his first NFL contract, and it's a big one.
The St. Louis Rams' first-round wide receiver and eighth overall pick received a $12.751 million contract that includes a $7.653 million signing bonus under the NFL slotting system for rookie deals.
Now, Austin will have to deal with the issues that go along with becoming a millionaire.
Following the NFL draft, Austin told the Rams' official website that he has been contending with people from Baltimore wanting money.
“Just people,” Austin told the Rams' official website. "Everybody expects a lot of things from you as far as money. Everybody wants to be around you. My phone doesn’t stop ringing now. It feels like they’re counting my bank account now. So that’s probably the hardest thing for me right now, just people.
“I’ve got a lot of cousins now. The whole [city of] Baltimore is my cousin now. We’re going to just try to keep focused and let my mother and all of them handle it.”
Austin had a stellar career at West Virginia.
He caught 288 career passes in college for 3,413 yards and 29 touchdowns, also rushing for 1,033 yards and six touchdowns.
Last season, Austin caught 112 passes for 1,289 yards and a dozen touchdowns. He rushed for 643 yards and three touchdowns.