Patrick Mahomes tops the NFL.com 2026 ranking of quarterback contracts by average annual value (AAV), at $63.1 million per year. Dak Prescott is second at $60 million. Six quarterbacks are tied at $55 million, followed by Brock Purdy and Jared Goff at $53 million each. The ranking counts tied players individually and uses the figures displayed in NFL.com’s gallery, which attributes its contract rankings to Spotrac.
Who are the highest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL in 2026?
The table follows NFL.com’s 2026 gallery and its Spotrac-attributed AAV figures. Ties are shown explicitly: the six players at $55 million share third place, while Purdy and Goff share ninth place. Justin Herbert is next in that gallery at $52.5 million.
| Rank | Quarterback | Team | AAV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patrick Mahomes | Kansas City Chiefs | $63.1 million |
| 2 | Dak Prescott | Dallas Cowboys | $60 million |
| T-3 | Matthew Stafford | Los Angeles Rams | $55 million |
| T-3 | Josh Allen | Buffalo Bills | $55 million |
| T-3 | Jordan Love | Green Bay Packers | $55 million |
| T-3 | Trevor Lawrence | Jacksonville Jaguars | $55 million |
| T-3 | Joe Burrow | Cincinnati Bengals | $55 million |
| T-3 | Baker Mayfield | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | $55 million |
| T-9 | Brock Purdy | San Francisco 49ers | $53 million |
| T-9 | Jared Goff | Detroit Lions | $53 million |
What does AAV mean in an NFL contract?
Average annual value is a contract-wide comparison: the contract’s total value divided by its length under the ranking source’s convention. It is a headline measure, not a promise that the player receives that amount in cash each season.
AAV is different from annual cash paid, salary-cap charge, and guaranteed money. Over The Cap lists these measures separately: its contract table includes total value, average per year, total guarantees, fully guaranteed value, and free-agency year; its 2026 salary table distinguishes cap number from cash spent. Those figures answer different questions about a deal and should not be substituted for one another.
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Why do sources give Mahomes different AAV figures?
NFL.com’s Spotrac-attributed gallery lists Mahomes at $63.1 million, as does the Associated Press report on his June 2026 reworked deal. Over The Cap’s current contract table shows $64 million under “Avg./Year.” That is a genuine source discrepancy, so the ranking above consistently uses NFL.com’s displayed figure rather than blending databases. See NFL.com’s 2026 contract ranking, Over The Cap’s quarterback contract table, and the Associated Press report.
The AP reported that the Chiefs and Mahomes agreed to rework his contract, adding two years through 2033. It gave a stated total value of $504.75 million, with possible incentives and escalators raising the figure to $522.25 million. The report attributed the terms to a person familiar with the deal because the Chiefs do not disclose contract terms; the higher incentives figure should not be read as guaranteed base value.
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What Baker Mayfield’s new deal changed
Mayfield’s three-year, $165 million extension puts his displayed AAV at $55 million, alongside Stafford, Allen, Love, Lawrence, and Burrow. NFL.com describes the extension as tying Mayfield at $55 million per year. This is why older contract rankings can differ: a Sports Illustrated list published July 24, 2026, before the extension, included Herbert in its top ten rather than Mayfield. The current NFL.com gallery reflects the later displayed ranking. See NFL.com’s ranking, its Mayfield extension report, and Sports Illustrated’s July 24 ranking.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to compare quarterback contracts beyond AAV
AAV helps compare headline contract size, but it does not show what a player is paid or what a team accounts for in a specific season. For a fuller comparison, check each measure separately:
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- Total contract value: the stated value across the contract under the source’s accounting conventions.
- Guaranteed money: distinguish total guarantees from the amount fully guaranteed.
- Cash by season: what the player is scheduled to receive in a particular year.
- Salary-cap number: the amount charged to the team’s cap for a season.
- Contract length and structure: account for extensions, restructures, incentives, and how the database treats old and new money.
Contract databases can differ because they handle those terms and contract years differently. Compare like with like and identify the source, rather than treating one AAV figure as a complete description of a deal. Over The Cap’s contract table and 2026 quarterback salary table show the distinction between contract averages and season-specific cap and cash figures.
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