One of the most important things in the NFL is a player's contract. The NFL has a salary cap, and teams must abide by the cap, so a player's salary is vital to the franchise. There are players on extremely long-term contracts that look like they will never leave their team, while there are massive players such as Lamar Jackson that are on one-year deals and could be free to sign with any team if they do not sign a contract with their team before free agency.
Often times contracts are discussed by how much a player is making that year, but some players are making a ton of money throughout their entire contract. These are the biggest contracts in full in the NFL.
10 Davante Adams/Russell Wilson- $140 million
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Ironically enough, both Davante Adams and Russell Wilson are tied for 10th place making $140 million in the contract. The funny part about the two being tied for 10th is that they both are on new teams this season, and both are in the AFC west. Adams went from the Green Bay Packers to the Las Vegas Raiders, while Russell Wilson was traded from the Seattle Seahawks to the Denver Broncos.
The difference in the contracts is that Russell Wilson's deal is only for four years, while Adams' was for five years. That is the discrepancy between quarterbacks and wide receivers at the highest level.
9 Khalil Mack- $141 million
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Khalil Mack is the only player on this list that is on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, Mack is only one of two players that is not a quarterback. In 2018, Khalil Mack was traded from the Las Vegas Raiders to the Chicago Bears, where he would sign his $141 million contract.
However, the contract would not result in what the Bears were hoping for, as they would not make the playoffs with Mack on the roster. Now with the Los Angeles Chargers, Mack makes more than many of the edge rushers that are considered above him, such as TJ Watt, Myles Garrett, and his Chargers teammate Joey Bosa. However, with Mack and Bosa on the edge, he could easily return to that 2016 form and bring the Chargers a championship.
8 Matt Ryan- $150 million
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Matty Ice was one of the biggest names to be traded this offseason. Ryan spent 14 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons, going to the Super Bowl in 2016 in his MVP season. Unfortunately, Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons were a part of one of the most iconic collapses in Super Bowl history, losing the championship to the New England Patriots while at one point up famously 28–3.
Now with the Colts, Ryan is in the penultimate year of his contract, and next year will be interesting to see if Ryan is beginning to consider retirement or hoping to receive another contract.
7 Aaron Rodgers- $150.815 million
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The oldest player on this list is Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. After speculation that the Green Bay quarterback may be retiring or moving to a different team, it was announced in March 2022 that Rodgers signed a three-year $150.815 million extension. Despite turning 39 years old at the end of the year, Rodgers is coming off of back-to-back MVP seasons.
Losing wide receiver Davante Adams will certainly hurt the Packers, but with Rodgers locked up for another long-term contract, this is the time that the Packers can shoot for a few final Super Bowl runs with the quarterback.
6 Matthew Stafford- $160 million
The Los Angeles Rams will not be regretting any bit of Matthew Stafford's contract due to finally winning a Super Bowl with the assistance of the former Detroit Lions quarterback. After achieving a Super Bowl victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in February, the Los Angeles Rams and Matthew Stafford agreed on a four year $160 million deal to make him one of the highest paid players in the entire league.
Stafford is certainly getting up there in age, and this is a massive contract, but with the dynasty-level team that the Rams currently have, it is smart for both sides to stay married for now, and it seems like both sides are happy to do so.
5 Dak Prescott- $160 million
Dak Prescott is not only one of the most talked about players in the NFL but also one of the highest-paid players in the league. Being the Dallas Cowboys quarterback and one of the highest-paid players in the league will attract a ton of fan attention. Prescott signed a four-year extension worth $160 million last year and helped propel the Dallas Cowboys to the playoffs.
However, the Cowboys have not had much success in the playoffs and have still yet to get past the divisional round. Luckily for Prescott, the Cowboys looked to be on the rise and couldn't make another playoff one this season.
4 DeShaun Watson- $230 million
The Cleveland Browns have made one of the biggest gambles in NFL history, giving quarterback DeShaun Watson a $230 million contract without even knowing if he would be able to play this season. The Browns will see Watson in action this year, as the NFL made it official that Watson will face an 11-game suspension due to his allegations that came out in 2021 and have continued to come out since.
Watson will return for the Week 13 matchup against the Houston Texans. Watson has been out of the league for nearly two years since his last NFL snap, and that kind of commitment is an extreme risk, but the Browns seem confident in their decision.
3 Kyler Murray- $230.5 million
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray had a ton of drama surrounding him this off-season as his contract talks remained a point of contention. There was drama with Murray deleting Cardinals' references off of his Instagram, to when Murray signed his deal, and there was homework that he needed to do in order to receive all the money.
Nonetheless, Murray has one of the biggest contracts in NFL history. The Cardinals are in a comfortable position right now as Murray's five-year $230.5 million contract won't hit the salary cap for another two seasons, but Murray will already have his $29 million signing bonus, so he will still be living lavishly before then.
2 Josh Allen- $258.034 million
Josh Allen is entering the final year of his rookie deal, but he already has signed a six-year $258 million deal. Buffalo Bills fans do not have to worry about Allen leaving their team anytime soon. However, next year Allen's salary cap will kick in, and the Bills will have to be much more clever with their financials, as Allen is just above $16 million on the cap this season but just over $39 million next season.
With Allen's generational talent, he is worth all the money in his contract, and he has the tools to become a Super Bowl champion quarterback in the very near future.
1 Patrick Mahomes- $450 million
It should come as no surprise that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has the most significant contract in the NFL currently and in NFL history. While most players sign a long-term deal for four to five years, Mahomes and the Chiefs made a unique contract where he signed a 10-year, $450 million contract. The contract was unprecedented at the time, and despite many contracts going for top-tier quarterbacks since, no contract has touched Mahomes'.
This will be the first year that his extension contract kicks in, and now instead of the just over $7 million cap hit that Mahomes was last season, he will now have over a $35 million cap hit, as the Chiefs will need to be financially creative in the future.