Who is the Highest Paid NFL Player?
The highest paid NFL player in 2020 is actually a tie between two quarterbacks: Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks and Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys. Both players are set to earn an annual salary of $31.4 million.
Aaron Rodgers
As of September 2018, the highest paid NFL player is Aaron Rodgers, who signed a four-year, $134 million contract extension with the Green Bay Packers in August 2018. This deal eclipses the previous record for the largest NFL contract, which was set by Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons in May 2018. Rodgers will earn an average of $33.5 million per year over the course of his four-year extension.
Russell Wilson
In 2018, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson became the highest-paid player in NFL history, signing a four-year extension worth $140 million. The average annual value of his contract is $35 million, which eclipses the previous record of $33.5 million set by Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck in 2016. Wilson’s average salary is more than $10 million higher than the second-highest-paid player in the league, Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford.
Ben Roethlisberger
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is the highest paid player in the NFL, according to contract information collected by Over the Cap. His four-year extension, signed in 2019, is worth $68 million in new money, with a total contract value of $87.4 million.
With an average annual salary of $21.85 million, Roethlisberger is also the highest paid player by average annual salary. He is followed by Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers ($33.5 million per year) and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson ($35 million per year).
Roethlisberger’s extension includes a $37.5 million signing bonus, with base salaries of $14 million in 2020, $19 million in 2021 and $23 million in 2022 and 2023. He also has a no-trade clause and a full no-movement clause in 2020 and 2021.
Drew Brees
Drew Brees is the highest-paid player in the NFL, as of September 2019. He signed a five-year contract extension with the New Orleans Saints in 2018 that is worth $100 million, with $61 million guaranteed. This makes him the first player in NFL history to have a contract worth $20 million per year.
