If he matures and balls out, which is likely, he is going to get paid as a high 1st
Let's say he does mature, balls out and goes 10th. Same pick as Garrett Wilson this year. The money would look like this:
2024- 3.7M
2025- 4.67M
2026- 5.6M
2027- 6.5M
2028- 5th year option ~ 9.7M
If he came out this year and went say, 52nd where George Pickens went
2023- 1.2M
2024- 1.5M
2025- 1.8M
2026- 2.15M
2027- while he would have only made 6.7M in this scenario vs. 14M by 2026 if he goes top 10 next year, he would be eligible for a really big pay day 2 years earlier if he comes out this year. Granted, he could get extended early on option 1, but this is kind of best vs worst case scenario. He could have had a big combine and still gone in the mid-to-late 1st, which would make a huge salary difference. He could get hurt again next year (has been hurt every year at LSU) or get lost in next year's class with Harrison Jr, Worthy, his own teammate Thomas, or Williams at USC (will be the #1 with a Heisman QB coming back) and go later than top 10. He'll also get NIL money, but it's quite a gamble to bet on himself and not take the guaranteed NFL money.