Top 5 Highest Paid Non-Quarterbacks In NFL History

There have been some massive contract extensions handed out so far during the 2025 NFL off-season. The league’s 14 highest paid players are all quarterbacks in terms of annual salaries, with Dak Prescott still maintaining the top spot at $60 million per year.

But who are the non-QBs that will earn the most money over the next few years? We take a look at the current list of highest paid players who aren’t signal callers:

Highest Paid Non-QBs In The NFL

Ja’Marr Chase becomes the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history 🔥

Thoughts on this list? pic.twitter.com/AonGCVRtfQ

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) March 17, 2025

5. (Tie) Nick Bosa ($34,000,000)

After a long hold out, Nick Bosa signed a deal on the eve of the 2023 NFL season that made him the highest paid non-QB at the time. The contract was of the five-year variety, and was worth $170 million, or $34 million annually. He deserved the payout, as he was coming off of a season in which he won Defensive Player of the Year by racking up 18.5 sacks. In the two seasons since, he has a total of 19.5 sacks combined.

5. (Tie) CeeDee Lamb ($34,000,000)

In addition to three straight Pro Bowl appearances, CeeDee Lamb was named a First Team All-Pro in 2023. During the following summer, he was rewarded by the Cowboys with a four-year, $136 million contract, which put him on par with Bosa’s $34 million annual payment. But it was slightly less than the deal that Justin Jefferson had signed the year prior, making Lamb the only player on our list that didn’t break any records at the time.

4. Justin Jefferson ($35,000,000)

Justin Jefferson was named an All-Pro in his first three NFL seasons before having his 2023 campaign cut short due to injury. But the Vikings paid him handsomely anyway during the 2024 off-season, inking the ultra-talented wide receiver to a four-year deal worth $35 million annually. The figure stood as the highest non-QB deal at the time, a title which he held for about nine months.

3. Maxx Crosby ($35,500,000)

There were trade rumors surrounding Maxx Crosby, but the Raiders put those to rest by signing him to a three-year extension worth $35.5 million annually. The figure put him just above Jefferson in terms of yearly money, and kicked off an off-season that would see the non-QB figure topped on three different occasions. Crosby’s status as the top earner in that regard lasted just four days.

2. Myles Garrett ($40,000,000)

After requesting a trade earlier in the off-season, Myles Garrett pivoted on that stance, proving that money talks. The Browns handed the superstar pass rusher a deal worth $40 million annually on March 9th, which was a solid step up from the $35.5 million that Crosby agreed to just a few days earlier. But like the Raiders’ pass rusher, Garrett would only hold the title of highest paid non-QB for less than a week.

1. Ja’Marr Chase ($40,250,000)

Had the Bengals taken care of their superstar wide receiver sooner, they may have saved themselves five to ten million dollars on an annual basis. But because of the contracts that were signed by Myles Garrett and Maxx Crosby earlier in the off-season, the price tag for Ja’Marr Chase makes him the highest-paid non-QB in the NFL. His overall contract was valued at $1 million more than Garrett’s, giving him $250,000 more per season.