Kerching! The Top 5 Earners in the NFL for the 2025 Season
While many will believe that becoming a professional athlete is a gateway to riches, the truth is that the majority can struggle to make the kind of money that the top end do. Some studies have shown that even NFL and NBA players can experience financial hardship, especially after retirement. The journey doesn’t always end the way that people predict.
That said, when you reach the top, you can be paid the type of money to make the rest of us swoon. The NFL, of course, is among the biggest payers, with top athletes earning tens of millions per season. Some mega contracts have been handed out in recent years, including the $503 million record contract handed to Patrick Mahomes.
Yet, when we look at single-year earnings, Mahomes (lengthy) contract isn’t enough to get him into the top five. Below, we present the top five earners for the 2025 NFL season. As you may note, all players on the list are quarterbacks, underlining the fact that football has really become focused on that position.
Note: All data is sourced from NFL.com and is correct for the 2025 season.
Dak Prescott – Dallas Cowboys ($60 million)
Proof that you don’t have to be the best player on the best team to earn the most in sports. With all due respect to Prescott, who is a good player and a four-time Pro Bowler, Dallas has struggled to get the best out of him in the past couple of seasons. At 32, he may have passed his peak.
Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills ($55 million)
Allen and the Bills have been considered among the favorites in the Super Bowl betting odds for the majority of the season, as they were the season before. While Allen probably won’t get his hands on the MVP award like last season, he’s still considered among the top players in the league. He’s tied in with the Bills until the 2028 season, and it seems like a marriage made in heaven. But can the Bills’ superstar quarterback deliver the Super Bowl that the fanbase craves?
Joe Burrow – Cincinnati Bengals ($55 million)
Oh, Joe. It’s difficult to really know what to say about Joe Burrow. His talent is not really in doubt, but he always seems to get the rug pulled out from underneath his feet just when things look like they are heading in the right direction. Sometimes it’s injuries, whereas other times it’s the supporting cast of the Bengals, and sometimes it’s simply the poor form of Burrow himself. Bengals fans might not like it, but it feels like a move for Burrow might suit all parties.
Trevor Lawrence – Jacksonville Jaguars ($55 million)
You know, sometimes teams but faith in a player with a big contract, and despite questioning from the fans and media, the player steps up to the plate and shows that they are worth it. That seems to be the case with 26-year old Lawrence, who led the Jags to a 13-4 season and broke offensive records for his team. He’s signed up to the Jags through to 2030, and we could see the dashing long-haired gunslinger leading Jacksonville to a period of success.
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Jordan Love – Green Bay Packers ($55 million)
Love has led the Packers to the Playoffs in each of his three seasons as the starting quarterback, so he has, to an extent, delivered. The only issue is that he is 1-3 in Playoff games, so he needs to learn about stepping up to the next level. That said, he is finding his feet in the NFL and Green Bay, and he is young enough to improve.