Who are the NFL's highest-paid players at every position? Plenty of record-setting deals have been made in the past year -- the quarterback position has been reset with a new highest-paid player four times. First Jalen Hurts, then Lamar Jackson and Justin Herbert and Joe Burrow became the highest-paid player in NFL history as the 2023 season kicked off.
In August, San Francisco 49ers DE Nick Bosa became the highest-paid defensive player. In June, Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson shattered the record for most guaranteed money given to a non-quarterback on offense, getting $110 million guaranteed.
We tracked the best-paid players at 16 different positions -- including long-snapper -- and will keep the numbers updated as more records get broken. To get the full picture on the top earners in this league, we sorted positions by two categories, which in a few cases have the same player at No. 1:
Three-year average (APY)
Total guaranteed money
Salary information courtesy of Roster Management System.
Let's start with Burrow and the highest-paid quarterbacks:
Jump to:
QB | RB | WR | TE
OT | OG | OC | EDGE
DT | LB | CB | S
K | LS | P
Quarterback
Highest three-year APY:
1. Joe Burrow, $62.9 million
Signed: September 2023 (contract ends in 2030)
2. Jared Goff (DET), $57.1 million
3. Trevor Lawrence (JAX), $56 million
4. Justin Herbert (LAC), $53.3 million
5. Lamar Jackson (BAL), $52 million
6. Jalen Hurts (PHI), $51 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Deshaun Watson, $230 million
Signed: March 2022 (contract ends in 2027)
2. Joe Burrow (CIN), $219.01 million
3. Patrick Mahomes (KC), $208.1 million
4. Trevor Lawrence (JAX), $200 million
5. Justin Herbert (LAC), $193.7 million
6. Kyler Murray (ARI), $189.5 million
Running back
Highest three-year APY:
1. Christian McCaffrey, $17.2 million
Signed: April 2020 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Jonathan Taylor (IND), $14 million
3. Alvin Kamara (NO), $12.7 million
4. Saquon Barkley (PHI), $12.6 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Christian McCaffrey, $36.3 million
Signed: April 2020 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Alvin Kamara (NO), $34.3 million
3. Jonathan Taylor (IND), $26.5 million
4. Saquon Barkley (PHI), $26 million
Wide receiver
Highest three-year APY:
1. Justin Jefferson, $35 million
Signed: June 2024 (contract ends in 2028)
2. A.J. Brown (PHI), $32 million
3. Jaylen Waddle (MIA), $28.3 million
4. Amon-Ra St. Brown (DET), $28 million
5. Cooper Kupp (LAR), $26.7 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Justin Jefferson, $110 million
Signed: June 2024 (contract ends in 2028)
2. A.J. Brown (PHI), $84 million
3. Amon-Ra St. Brown (DET), $77 million
4. Cooper Kupp (LAR), $75 million
5. Tyreek Hill (MIA), $72 million
6. Jaylen Waddle (MIA), $71.6 million
Tight end
Highest three-year APY:
1. Travis Kelce, $17.1 million
Signed: April 2024 (contract ends in 2025)
2. T.J. Hockenson (MIN), $16 million
3. George Kittle (SF), $15.3 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. T.J. Hockenson, $42.5 million
Signed: August 2023 (contract ends in 2027)
2. George Kittle (SF), $40 million
3. Mark Andrews (BAL), $37.6 million
Offensive tackle
Highest three-year APY:
1. Penei Sewell, $30 million
Signed: April 2024 (contract ends in 2029)
2. Laremy Tunsil (HOU), $25 million
3. Andrew Thomas (NYG), $24.2 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Penei Sewell, $70 million
Signed: April 2024 (contract ends in 2029)
2. Andrew Thomas (NYG), $61.9 million
3. Ryan Ramczyk (NO), $60.2 million
Guard
Highest three-year APY:
1. Chris Lindstrom, $21.8 million
Signed: March 2023 (contract ends in 2028)
2. Robert Hunt (CAR), $21 million
3. Quenton Nelson (IND), $20.9 million
4. Mike Onwenu (NE), $19 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Robert Hunt, $63 million
Signed: March 2024 (contract ends in 2028)
2. Chris Lindstrom (ATL), $62.7 million
3. Quenton Nelson (IND), $60 million
Center
Highest three-year APY:
1. Landon Dickerson, $21.7 million
Signed: March 2024 (contract ends in 2029)
2. Frank Ragnow (DET), $14 million
3. Lloyd Cushenberry (TEN), $12.6 million
4. Erik McCoy (NO), $12.5 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Frank Ragnow, $42 million
Signed: May 2021 (contract ends in 2026)
2. Ryan Kelly (IND), $34 million
3. Erik McCoy (NO), $33 million
4. Lloyd Cushenberry (TEN), $30 million
Cornerback
Highest three-year APY:
1. Jaire Alexander, $21.8 million
Signed: May 2022 (contract ends in 2027)
2. Jalen Ramsey (MIA), $20.6 million
3. Marshon Lattimore (NO), $20.3 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Denzel Ward, $71.25 million
Signed: April 2022 (contract ends in 2028)
2. Jalen Ramsey (MIA), $71.2 million
3. Marshon Lattimore (NO), $68.3 million
Safety
Highest three-year APY:
1. Antoine Winfield Jr., $21.5 million
Signed: May 2024 (contract ends in 2028)
2. Derwin James Jr. (LAC), $19.6 million
3. Minkah Fitzpatrick (PIT), $18.6 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Antoine Winfield Jr., $45 million
Signed: May 2024 (contract ends in 2028)
2. Derwin James Jr. (LAC), $42 million
T3. Minkah Fitzpatrick (PIT), $36 million
T3. Jessie Bates III (ATL), $36 million
Edge rusher
Highest three-year APY:
1. Nick Bosa, $34.7 million
Signed: September 2023 (contract ends in 2029)
2. Josh Hines-Allen (JAX), $31 million
3. T.J. Watt (PIT), $30.5 million
4. Brian Burns (NYG), $30 million
5. Myles Garrett (CLE), $26.7 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Nick Bosa, $119.9 million
Signed: September 2023 (contract ends in 2029)
2. Myles Garrett (CLE), $100 million
3. Josh Hines-Allen (JAX), $88 million
4. Brian Burns (NYG), $87.5 million
Defensive tackle
Highest three-year APY:
1. Chris Jones, $31.7 millon
Signed: March 2024 (contract ends in 2028)
2. Christian Wilkins (LV), $28 million
3. Derrick Brown (CAR), $24 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Chris Jones, $101 million
Signed: March 2024 (contract ends in 2028)
2. Christian Wilkins (LV), $82.7 million
3. Quinnen Williams (NYJ), $66 million
Off-ball linebacker
Highest three-year APY:
1. Roquan Smith, $20 million
Signed: January 2023 (contract ends 2027)
2. Fred Warner (SF), $19.5 million
3. Tremaine Edmunds (CHI), $19 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Roquan Smith, $60 million
Signed: January 2023 (contract ends 2027)
2. C.J. Mosley (NYJ), $51 million
3. Tremaine Edmunds (CHI), $45 million
Kicker
Highest three-year APY:
1. Justin Tucker, $6.2 million
Signed: August 2022 (contract ends in 2027)
2. Jake Elliott (PHI), $6 million
3. Matt Gay (IND), $5.9 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Justin Tucker, $17.5 million
Signed: August 2022 (contract ends in 2027)
2. Jake Elliott (PHI), $14.1 million
3. Graham Gano (NYG), $13.2 million
Long-snapper
Highest three-year APY:
1. Luke Rhodes, $1.67 million
Signed: September 2023 (contract ends 2027)
2. Joe Cardona (NE), $1.63 million
3. Zach Wood (NO), $1.62 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Tyler Ott, $2.8 million
Signed: March 2024 (contract ends 2026)
2. Thomas Hennessy, $2.62 million
3. Joe Cardona (NE), $2.6 million
Punter
Highest three-year APY:
1. Michael Dickson, $3.9 million
Signed: June 2021 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Jack Fox (DET), $3.6 million
3. Tress Way (WSH), $3.3 million
Total guaranteed money:
1. Michael Dickson, $8.5 million
Signed: June 2021 (contract ends in 2025)
2. Jack Fox (DET), $7.5 million
2. Tress Way (WSH), $6.4 million