Signing their first NFL contracts Thursday with team president Michael Bidwill were (clockwise from upper left)DE Kareem Martin, TE Troy Niklas and WR John Brown.

With slotted contract numbers and a draft that took place two weeks later, it makes sense that the players chosen by the Cardinals will sign their contracts sooner rather than later.

The stream started Thursday, with second-round pick Troy Niklas and third-round choices Kareem Martin and John Brown inking their new deals. Each signed four-year contracts.

The remainder of the class – first-rounder Deone Bucannon, fourth-rounder Logan Thomas, fifth-rounder Ed Stinson and sixth-rounder Walter Powell -- is not expected to take a significant amount of time. The Cardinals begin organized team activities next week, although all the rookies arrived Monday after the draft and were on the field Tuesday morning taking part in the Phase 2 workouts.  

As of Thursday morning, the NFLPA website had the Cardinals listed with about $5.5 million in salary cap space. Not all rookies will impact the cap in the offseason, when only the top 51 cap numbers are figured into the team's cap total.

Speeding through signings is becoming more and more prevalent around the league. The Chicago Bears, who were at the forefront of quick deals after the 2011 collective bargaining agreement, have already signed their entire draft class.