NFL Positional Market Resets

Michael Ginnitti
Michael Ginnitti, Managing Editor & NFL/MLB ExpertJune 13, 2023
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#joe cardona #michael dickson #justin tucker #derwin james #denzel ward #jaire alexander #roquan smith #joey bosa #t.j. watt #aaron donald #ronnie stanley #laremy tunsil #george kittle #darren waller #cooper kupp #tyreek hill #kyle juszczyk #christian mccaffrey #deshaun watson #lamar jackson
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As the NFL offseason turns from business to practice, a snapshot look at the top of the mountain for each position's financial market, including metrics for average salary and practical guarantee, and the days since the belt has last been passed.

Player Top AAV Days Since Reset Top Guarantee Days Since Reset
Quarterback $52,000,000 47 $230,000,000 452
Running Back $16,015,875 1,156 $38,162,500 1,156
Fullback $5,400,000 821 $10,000,000 821
Wide Receiver $30,000,000 447 $75,000,000 370
Tight End $17,000,000 276 $40,000,000 1,034
Offensive Line $25,000,000 86 $64,166,000 956
Interior Defensive Line $31,666,666 372 $95,000,000 372
Edge Defender $28,002,750 642 $102,000,000 1,050
Linebacker $20,000,000 154 $60,000,000 154
Cornerback $21,000,000 393 $71,250,000 421
Safety $19,133,000 300 $42,000,000 300
Kicker $6,000,000 309 $17,500,000 309
Punter $3,675,000 739 $7,500,000 739
Long Snapper $1,575,000 89 $2,600,000 89

Quarterback

The average QB salary pinnacle has been eclipsed twice this spring, with Jalen Hurts & Lamar Jackson leapfrogging Aaron Rodgers in recent weeks. Joe Burrow & Justin Herbert should have something to say about this very soon. From a guarantee standpoint, Deshaun Watson's unicorn contract remains top dog, with Lamar & Hurts filing in appropriately underneath him as a more true top metric.

TOP AAV

Lamar Jackson, $52,000,000
Signed Date: April 27, 2023

TOP GUARANTEE

Deshaun Watson, $230,000,000
Signed Date: March 18, 2022

Running Back

Not great. It's been over 1,100 days since the average salary and guarantee figure at the running back position has been reset. The Saquon Barkley's of the world are in the process of attemping, but McCaffrey's numbers seem safe for the time being.

TOP AAV

Christian McCaffrey, $16,015,875
Signed Date: April 13, 2020

TOP GUARANTEE

Christian McCaffrey, $38,162,500
Signed Date: April 13, 2020

Fullback

Kyle Juszczyk is on his third contract with the Niners and should eclipse the $42M earned mark this season, which more than doubles any other fullbacks career earnings in NFL history.

Top AAV

Kyle Juszczyk, $5,400,000
Signed Date: March 14, 2021

Top Guarantee

Kyle Juszczyk, $10,000,000
Signed Date: March 14, 2021

Wide Receiver

Tyreek Hill's $30M gets an asterisk because of the validity of it. His deal in Miami carries a $24M AAV for 4 years, with a whopping $45M cash payout set for an unlikely 5th year. Davante Adams' $28M is backloaded into the final two seasons of his deal, but Justin Jefferson's next contract could soon add plenty of substance back into this market.

Top AAV

Tyreek Hill, $30,000,000*
Signed Date: March 23, 2022

Top Guarantee

Cooper Kupp, $75,000,000
Signed Date: June 8, 2022

Tight End

A few tight ends have feebly taken over the AAV belt of late, but George Kittle's $40M practical guarantee has stuck for over 1,000 days. A big 2023 for Kyle Pitts in Atlanta could begin the process of changing that sooner rather than later.

Top AAV

Darren Waller, $17,000,000
Signed Date: September 10, 2022

Top Guarantee

George Kittle, $40,000,000
Signed Date: August 13, 2020 

Offensive Lineman

While the AAV market for OLs has matured exponentially, the guarantee numbers seem to be lagging behind a bit. It stands to reason that a position group with 7 players now earning $20M over more on average should have practical guarantees upwards of $75M. Andrew Thomas is a candidate to get there soon.

Top AAV

Laremy Tunsil, $25,000,000
Signed Date: March 19, 2023

Top Guarantee

Ronnie Stanley, $64,166,000
Signed Date: October 30, 2020

Interior Defensive Lineman

It's Aaron Donald's world and everyone else is just playing for 2nd. Well, the IDL market saw three consecutive brand new seconds this offseason, and Quinnen Williams, Christian Wilkins, & Chris Jones could have more to say about it shortly.

Top AAV

Aaron Donald, $31,666,666
Signed Date: June 6, 2022

Top Guarantee

Aaron Donald, $95,000,000
Signed Date: June 6, 2022

Edge Defender

It's been almost 650 days since the Edge Defender average salary market has been reset, and over 1,000 since Joey Bosa's $102M guarantee took over the top spot resepctively. There's no reason Nick Bosa shouldn't stand atop both of these lists soon.

Top AAV

T.J. Watt, $28,002,750
Signed Date: September 9, 2021

Top Guarantee

Joey Bosa, $102,000,000
Signed Date: July 28, 2020

Linebacker

The Ravens pumped $60M guaranteed into Roquan Smith after handing out two picks and a player to secure the rights to him las Halloween. Devin White & Patrick Queen are at least hoping to get a sniff of these numbers soon.

Top AAV

Roquan Smith, $20,000,000
Signed Date: January 10, 2023

Top Guarantee

Roquan Smith, $60,000,000
Signed Date: January 10, 2023

Cornerback

For awhile, the cornerback markets aligned closely with the wide receiver markets - for obvious reasons. While it's easy to look at Alexander's $21M versus Hill's $30M and see an ocean in between, there's only a $3.75M difference between the top practical guarantee figures ($75M vs. $71.25M). A.J. Terrell & Trevon Diggs are fringe candidates to approach these numbers soon.

Top AAV

Jaire Alexander, $21,000,000
Signed Date: May 16, 2022

Top Guarantee

Denzel Ward, $71,250,000
Signed Date: April 18, 2022

Safety

It's been almost a full calendar year since Derwin James reset both of these markets, and there's no clearcut next man up candidate right now. Antoine Winfield Jr. seems the closest in the clubhouse for now.

Top AAV

Derwin James, $19,133,000
Signed Date: August 17, 2022

Top Guarantee

Derwin James, $42,000,000
Signed Date: August 17, 2022

Kicker

Justin Tucker's contract is now nearly a year old, and his $17.5M guaranteed still sits $4.5M higher than any other kicker in the game (Matt Gay's free agent deal in Indy carries $13M).

Top AAV

Justin Tucker, $6,000,000
Signed Date: August 8, 2022

Top Guarantee

Justin Tucker, $17,500,000
Signed Date, August 8, 2022

Punter

All of Michael Dickson's $7.5M guarantee was paid out in Year 1 (2021), putting him back on a year to year contract in Seattle.

Top AAV

Michael Dickson, $3,675,000
Signed Date: June 4, 2021

Top Guarantee

Michael Dickson, $7,500,000
Signed Date: June 4, 2021

Long Snapper

The Patriots have financially rewarded special teamers for a long time, and that includes carrying the league's top-paid long snapper for 2023.

Top AAV

Joe Cardona, $1,575,000
Signed Date: March 16, 2023

Top Guarantee

Joe Cardona, $2,600,000
Signed Date: March 16, 2023


#joe cardona #michael dickson #justin tucker #derwin james #denzel ward #jaire alexander #roquan smith #joey bosa #t.j. watt #aaron donald #ronnie stanley #laremy tunsil #george kittle #darren waller #cooper kupp #tyreek hill #kyle juszczyk #christian mccaffrey #deshaun watson #lamar jackson
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