How Rupert Murdoch Changed Sports Media Forever
NFL teams heading into the 2023 season have constructed their rosters under a record $224.8 million salary cap, an increase of $16.6 million from the league’s 2022 salary cap.
The NFL also approached $20 billion in revenue last season. It was far from the only financial record set in the league as three franchise quarterbacks, all aged 25 or 26, signed five-year contracts this offseason that marked all-time high average-annual salaries for an NFL player.
First came Jalen Hurts signing a then-record five-year, $255M deal with the Eagles ($51M average) in April, followed by the Ravens extending Lamar Jackson a couple of weeks later for $260M ($52M average). Finally, Justin Herbert set the current record in July with his $262.5M extension with the Chargers worth $52.5 million per season.
Regardless of average annual salary, below are the 25 highest-paid NFL players for 2023 when considering their salary and bonuses for the season. Data was compiled from Spotrac.
| Rank | Player | Team | Compensation |
| 1 | Lamar Jackson, QB | Baltimore Ravens | $80 million |
| 2 | Deshaun Watson QB | Cleveland Browns | $46 million |
| 3 | Daniel Jones QB | New York Giants | $46 million |
| 4 | Patrick Mahomes QB | Kansas City Chiefs | $40.45 million |
| 5 | Kyler Murray QB | Arizona Cardinals | $39 million |
| 6 | Aaron Rodgers QB | New York Jets | $36.8 million |
| 7 | Chris Lindstrom G | Atlanta Falcons | $35.7 million |
| 8 | Orlando Brown Jr LT | Cincinnati Bengals | $33.7 million |
| 9 | Laremy Tunsil LT | Houston Texans | $32.4 million |
| 10 | Daron Payne DT | Washington Commanders | $31.01 million |
| 11 | Dak Prescott QB | Dallas Cowboys | $31 million |
| 12 | Derek Carr QB | New Orleans Saints | $30 million |
| 13 | Kirk Cousins QB | Minnesota Vikings | $30 million |
| 14 | Aaron Donald DT | Los Angeles Rams | $28.5 million |
| 15 | Russell Wilson QB | Denver Broncos | $28 million |
| 16 | Josh Allen QB | Buffalo Bills | $28 million |
| 17 | Geno Smith QB | Seattle Seahawks | $27.5 million |
| 18 | Matthew Stafford QB | Los Angeles Rams | $27.5 million |
| 19 | Roquan Smith ILB | Baltimore Ravens | $27 million |
| 20 | Ryan Tannehill QB | Tennessee Titans | $27 million |
| 21 | Davante Adams WR | Las Vegas Raiders | $26.6 million |
| 22 | Tyreek Hill WR | Miami Dolphins | $26.3 million |
| 23 | Quinnen Williams DT | New York Jets | $26.1 million |
| 24 | Jared Goff QB | Detroit Lions | $25.9 million |
| 25 | Jeffery Simmons DT | Tennessee Titans | $25.5 million |
