Who are the highest paid NFL players in 2022? The football players who make the most money are typically the best players in the game. To get to the level of earning millions of dollars, athletes must train relentlessly, compete at the highest level to win games, and generally possess freakish athletic ability. NFL stars who earn the most money are true international superstars who live impossibly luxurious lives on and off the field. Who is the highest paid NFL player in the world right now? Who are the richest NFL stars?
The highest paid NFL quarterbacks Josh Allen, Kirk Cousins, and DeShaun Watson earn the most money in the NFL, putting them among the highest paid athletes of all time. Kansas City's quarterback Patrick Mahomes is not far behind on the richest football players list, as are two of the best paid quarterbacks Ryan Tannehill and Carson Wentz.
Check out all the highest paid NFL players below, and come back when new NFL stars sign fat contracts to see how their salaries stack up!
Joshua Patrick Allen (born May 21, 1996) is an American football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Wyoming. Despite receiving few offers out of high school and having to play one year at a junior college, Allen was eventually recruited to Wyoming, where he led the Cowboys to a Mountain West Conference division title and two bowl games. He was drafted by the Bills in the first round (7th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft, becoming the highest drafted quarterback in franchise history.
Kirk Daniel Cousins (born August 19, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State, where he was the Spartans' starter from 2009 to 2011, and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Originally drafted as a backup to fellow rookie Robert Griffin III, he would occasionally appear in games, along with a few starts, during his first three seasons with the team. In the 2015 preseason, Cousins replaced an injured Griffin and remained the team's starter from then until he left in free agency following the 2017 season.
During his time with the Redskins, he set numerous franchise records and appeared in the 2017 Pro Bowl. After two years of being unable to agree with the Redskins on a long-term deal, signing two franchise tags in the process, he signed a three-year, fully guaranteed $84 million contract as a free agent with the Vikings in 2018. At the time, this deal made him the highest paid player on a per-year basis in NFL history.
Derrick Deshaun Watson (born September 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson and led the team to a CFP championship game appearance in 2015 and a national championship win in 2016. He was selected by the Texans 12th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft. In 2018, his second year, Watson was named to his first career Pro Bowl.
Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He is the son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes. Mahomes played college football and college baseball at Texas Tech University. Following his sophomore year, he quit baseball to focus solely on football. Mahomes' junior year, he led all NCAA Division 1 players in multiple categories including passing yards (5,052 yards) and passing touchdowns (53 touchdowns). He then entered the 2017 NFL Draft where he was the tenth overall selection by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Ryan Timothy Tannehill III (born July 27, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas A&M, where he transitioned from wide receiver to the team's starting quarterback, and was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the first round (eighth overall) in the 2012 NFL Draft, where he was the starter for several years until his trade to the Titans.
Carson James Wentz (born December 30, 1992) is an American football quarterback for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Dakota State University (NDSU) and was selected by the Eagles with the second overall pick of the 2016 NFL Draft, the highest selection ever for an FCS player. During his time at NDSU, the team won five NCAA FCS national championships. In his first year with the Eagles, Wentz accumulated multiple NFL and Eagles rookie records, including most pass attempts by a rookie quarterback and most pass completions by a rookie. In the 2017 season, Wentz was crucial to the strong and powerful start which had the Eagles at an 11–2 record at the time he went down with an injury.
