We review –position by position– the players who have the most money guaranteed in their contracts, as well as the players with the highest average annual salary for the next three seasons in the league
Who are the highest paid players at each position in the NFL? Many stars have notched up big paydays in 2022, resetting the market for their respective jobs, but there are a few whose deals from previous years have held up for their positions.
Only in this me, the safety Minkah Fitzpatrick obtained a four-year extension of the Pittsburgh Steelers which will pay him $18.4 million per year, while star Los Angeles Rams, Aaron Donald, destroyed the market for defensive tackles, receiving $31.6 million for the next three years. The Rams also gave up Cooper Coup a contract extension that included $75 million guaranteed, exceeding the guarantees he received Tyreek Hill when it was exchanged to the Miami Dolphins in May ($72.2 million).
We track the highest-paid players at 16 different positions — including long center — and will keep the numbers updated as more marks drop. To get a complete picture of the top earners in the league, we raffled the positions into two categories, which in very few cases featured the same player ranked No. 1:
Salary information courtesy of the Roster Management System of ESPN.
Let’s start with the highest-paid quarterbacks, including two massive contracts signed this offseason:
Quarterback
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Aaron Rodgers50.2 million dollars
Signed: March 2022 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Deshaun Watson (CLE), 46 million dollars
3. Josh Allen (BUF), $45.9 million
Total money guaranteed:
1. Deshaun Watson230 million dollars
Signed: March 2022 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Aaron Rodgers (UK), $150.6 million
3. Josh Allen (BUF), $150 million
Hall
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Christian McCaffrey17.2 million dollars
Signed: April 2020 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Ezekiel Elliott (DAL), $16 million
3. Alvin Kamara (NO), 12.7 million dollars
Total money guaranteed:
1. Ezekiel Elliott50.05 million dollars
Signed: September 2019 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Christian McCaffrey (CAR), $36.3 million
3. Alvin Kamara (NO), 34.3 million dollars
wide receiver
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Cooper Coup26.7 million dollars
Signed: June 2022 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Stefon Diggs (BUF), $26.2 million
3. Tyreek Hill (MIA): 25 million dollars
Total money guaranteed:
1. Cooper Coup75 million dollars
Signed: June 2022 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Tyreek Hill (MIA), 72.2 million dollars
3. Stefon Diggs (BUF), $70 million
tight wing
Highest annual average for three years:
1. George Kittle15.3 million dollars
Signed: August 2020 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Mark Andrews (BAL), $15.06 million
3. Dallas Goedert (PHI), $14.2 million
Total money guaranteed:
1. George Kittle40 million dollars
Signed: August 2020 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Mark Andrews (BAL), $37.6 million
3. Dallas Goedert (PHI), $34.8 million
offensive line
Highest annual average for three years:
1. David Bakhtiari23.5 million dollars
Signed: November 2020 (contract ends in 2024)
2. Laremy Tunsil (HOU), $22 million
3. Ronnie Stanley (BAL), $21.2 million
Total money guaranteed:
1. Ronnie Stanley64.1 million dollars
Signed: October 2020 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Ryan Ramczyk (NO), 60.2 million dollars
3. Lane Johnson (PHI), 54.5 million dollars
cornerback
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Jaire Alexander21.7 million dollars
Signed: May 2022 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Jalen Ramsey (LAR), $20.6 million
3. Denzel Ward (CLE), 20.2 million dollars
Total money guaranteed:
1. Denzel Ward71.25 million dollars
Signed: April 2022 (contract ends in 2027)
2. Jalen Ramsey (LAR), $71.2 million
3. Marlon Humphrey (BAL), $66.9 million
Quarterback Press Specialist
Highest annual average for three years:
1. T.J. Watt30.5 million dollars
Signed: September 2021 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Joey Bosa (LAC), 29.2 million dollars
3. Myles Garrett (CLE), 26.7 million dollars
Total money guaranteed:
1. Joey Bosa102 million dollars
Signed: July 2020 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Myles Garrett (CLE), $100 million
3. Khalil Mack (LAC), 90 million dollars
defensive tackle
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Aaron Donald31.6 million dollars
Signed: June 2022 (contract ends in 2025)
2. DeForest Buckner (IND), $21.2 million
3. Jonathan Allen (WSH), $18.5 million
Total money guaranteed:
1. Aaron Donald60 million dollars
Signed: June 2022 (contract ends in 2025)
2. DeForest Buckner (IND), $56.3 million
3. Vita Vea (TB), $40.5 million
Linebacker
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Fred Warner19.5 million dollars
Signed: July 2021 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Darius Leonard (IND), $18.7 million
3. C.J. Mosley (NYJ), $17 million
Total money guaranteed:
1. Darius Leonard52.5 million dollars
Signed: August 2021 (contract ends in 2026)
2. C.J. Mosley (NYJ), $51 million
3. Fred Warner (SF), $40.5 million
Safety
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Minkah Fitzpatrick18.4 million dollars
Signed: June 2022 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Jamal Adams (SEA), 17.6 million dollars
3. Justin Simmons (DEN), $15.5 million
Total money guaranteed:
T1. Minkah Fitzpatrick36 million dollars
Signed: June 2022 (contract ends in 2026)
T1. Jamal Adams (SEA), $36 million
3. Marcus Williams (BAL), $35.9 million
place kicker
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Justin Tucker5.4 million dollars
Signed: April 2019 (contract ends in 2023)
2. Younghoe Koo (ATL), $5.1 million
3. Daniel Carlson (MF), $4.6 million
Total money guaranteed:
1. Justin Tucker12.5 million dollars
Signed: April 2019 (contract ends in 2023)
2. Younghoe Koo (ATL), $11.5 million
3. Daniel Carlson (MF), $11.1 million
long center
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Josh Harris1.4 million dollars
Signed: March 2022 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Luke Rhodes (IND), $1.21 million
3. Zach Wood (NO), 1.20 million dollars
Total money guaranteed:
1. Josh Harris1.9 million dollars
Signed: March 2022 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Zach Wood (NO), 1.3 million dollars
3. Tyler Ott (SEA), 1.2 million dollars
punter
Highest annual average for three years:
1. Michael Dickson3.9 million dollars
Signed: June 2021 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Tress Way (WSH), $3.3 million
3. Logan Cooke (JAX), $3.02 million
Total money guaranteed:
1. Michael Dickson8.5 million dollars
Signed: June 2021 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Tress Way (WSH), $6.4 million
3. Logan Cooke (JAX), $6 million
