Quarterback is the most important position in the entire sport, and the NFL’s signal callers are subsequently rewarded with the biggest salaries and contracts.
With the 2026 salary cap sitting at a record $301.2 million per team up a 8% from just five years ago the salaries of the league’s starting quarterbacks have skyrocketed to levels previously unimaginable. Ten in quarterbacks now average $50 million or more per year, an unprecedented concentration of nine-figure deals.
And yet two of the game’s biggest names find themselves on the outside looking in. Patrick Mahomes, a three-time Super Bowl champion and three-time MVP, ranks just 15th among QBs by AAV at $45 million. Tua Tagovailoa, who was firmly inside the top 10 heading into last season, has since slipped out of the conversation entirely.
Where do the names that remain rank? Let’s find out.
10) Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles – AAV: $51 million
Jalen Hurts rounds out the top 10 on the strength of his five-year, $255 million deal signed back in April 2023 a contract that made him the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history at the time. The deal included $179.4 million in guarantees, and the Eagles haven’t discussed an extension yet, comfortable letting him play out the final stretch of his current terms.
The 2026 season is effectively a prove-it year for Hurts. Team sources have acknowledged that the Eagles’ passing offense has underperformed relative to their talent level over the past two seasons, and the pressure is firmly on their franchise quarterback to correct that. Despite being ranked 10th in AAV, Hurts has accomplished more than most QBs above him, including a Super Bowl MVP after the 2024 season.
9) Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens – AAV: $52 million
Lamar Jackson is entering the fourth year of his historic five-year, $260 million deal. The contract included $185 million in total guarantees (with $135 million fully guaranteed at signing.) and the clock is ticking on his current terms. Jackson will collect $51.25 million in base salary in 2026, his cap charge will climb to nearly $75 million.
A two-time MVP who finished 2025 with 21 passing touchdowns despite missing time with injury, Jackson remains one of the most dynamic players in football. An extension should be on the horizon, and when it arrives, it will almost certainly vault him well above his current ranking.
8) Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers – AAV: $52.5 million
Justin Herbert is in year three of his five-year, $262.5 million deal with the Chargers, a contract that briefly made him the highest-paid quarterback in the league when it was signed in 2023. The contract features $133.7 million fully guaranteed and $193.7 million in total injury protection.
Herbert has been one of the steadiest passers in football, recording at least 20 touchdowns in every season of his career, including 26 in 2025. The Chargers made the playoffs in his first year under head coach Jim Harbaugh, and despite a difficult postseason outing, the partnership between Herbert and Harbaugh looks like one of the more promising long-term pairings in the league.
7) Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers – AAV: $53 million
What a rise it has been for the former Mr. Irrelevant. Brock Purdy officially joined the top tier of NFL quarterback salaries in May 2025 when he signed a five-year, $265 million extension with the 49ers. The deal, which runs through the 2030 season, kicks in for 2026 and ties him with Jared Goff in AAV.
Purdy played just nine games in 2025 due to injury but still managed over 2,000 passing yards and 20 touchdowns in limited action. The 49ers believed in what they had seen enough to make him one of the 10 highest-paid quarterbacks in the league, and the faith appears justified based on his efficiency numbers whenever healthy.
6) Jared Goff, Detroit Lions – AAV: $53 million
Jared Goff signed a four-year, $212 million extension with the Lions in 2024 that included $170 million in guaranteed money. The deal keeps him in Detroit through the 2027 season, with an option for the 2028 campaign, and cemented his status as one of the most underrated elite quarterbacks in football.
Goff has been remarkably consistent since joining Detroit, leading the Lions to the NFC Championship Game and establishing himself as one of the cleanest pocket passers in the league. His AAV ties Purdy for sixth, but his continued durability and production give the Lions every reason to be comfortable with their investment.
5) Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars – AAV: $55 million
Trevor Lawrence’s five-year, $275 million deal which kicked in fully for the 2025 season looked like a questionable investment heading into last year. It turned out to be anything but. Lawrence bounced back with a career-high 29 passing touchdowns in 2025 and led the Jaguars to a 13-4 record, finally delivering on the promise that made him the consensus No. 1 pick in 2021.
The deal includes $200 million in total guarantees and ties Lawrence with Josh Allen, Jordan Love, and Joe Burrow at $55 million AAV. With a franchise quarterback now performing like one, Jacksonville heads into 2026 with real optimism.
4) Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers – AAV: $55 million
Jordan Love signed a four-year, $220 million extension with the Packers after just one season as a starter a deal that included a record $75 million signing bonus and $155 million in new full guarantees. It was an aggressive commitment from Green Bay, and Love has had mixed results in living up to the terms.
Love impressed in his first season as starter for the Packers but has since delivered mixed results, though he was at one time an MVP candidate in 2025. Now in the second year of his extension, Love heads into 2026 with something to prove. His $55 million AAV ties him with three other signal callers for the second-highest annual value in the league.
3) Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals – AAV: $55 million
Joe Burrow was the highest-paid quarterback in the league for nearly a year before Dak Prescott’s extension rewrote the market. His five-year, $275 million deal signed in September 2023 came with $219.01 million in total guarantees, the second-most in NFL history at the time behind Deshaun Watson’s $230 million.
Burrow has battled injuries throughout his career but remains one of the most lethal passers in football when healthy, putting up nearly 7,000 passing yards and 60 touchdowns over his last 25 games. He is under contract through 2029 with a no-trade clause, and despite a difficult 2025 season in Cincinnati, he has made clear he has no interest in playing anywhere else.
2) Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills – AAV: $55 million
Josh Allen came off an MVP season and cashed in accordingly, signing a six-year, $330 million extension with the Bills. The deal eclipsed every contract in NFL history in terms of guaranteed money, featuring a record $250 million guaranteed surpassing even Prescott’s $231 million.
Allen is entering the second year of the extension in 2026 and has not missed a game due to injury in his career. The Bills are built to compete for championships around him, and while his $55 million AAV technically ties him with three other quarterbacks, his guaranteed money figure alone makes him the most richly secured signal caller in the sport.
1) Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys – AAV: $60 million
When Jerry Jones spends, he spends big. In the hours before the Cowboys’ 2024 season opener, Jones made Dak Prescott the highest-paid quarterback, and highest-paid player in NFL history, handing him a four-year, $240 million deal.
Prescott’s annual average value of $60 million remains a full $5 million clear of every other quarterback in the league, a gap that has held despite multiple new deals being signed since. The contract features $231 million in guaranteed money. Prescott’s résumé remains a point of debate, he is 2-5 in the playoffs and has never advanced past the divisional round, but the Cowboys, as the NFL’s most valuable franchise, operate on a different financial logic than most. For now, Dak sits alone at the top of the market.
