NFL Player Salaries
Want to know how much money your favorite NFL footballer makes? Find out what determines NFL player salaries, the average salary by position, the top NFL player salaries and the average NFL player salaries in this article.
Founded in 1920 with 11 teams, the National Football League (NFL) is currently the largest professional American Football league in the world. Currently, 32 teams from across the United States participate in this annual 17-week competition. The league is divided into the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC), each comprising 16 teams in 4 divisions. Each team is allowed to sign 53 players, of which 45 may be kept ready every week. The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), of which all NFL players are members, negotiates their salaries and contracts through the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Factors Determining NFL Player Salaries
An NFL player's salary is any compensation in money, investments, loans, property or other assets, apart from benefits like insurance and pension. The following factors determine it:
Skill and Tier
Skill plays a crucial role — the better a player performs on the field, the more he is paid, and even a rookie who has never taken a pro snap can earn more than established players on sheer potential. For contract negotiations, the CBA divides players into three tiers, each with different rights: new players who have not completed their first year; players who have completed three full seasons and whose contracts have expired; and players with four or more seasons whose contracts have expired.
Minimum Salary
The CBA sets a minimum salary each year, which rises with experience. The minimum for a new player was US $295,000 in 2008, rising to US $310,000 in 2009; a player on the active roster for at least three games is guaranteed this amount.
Salary Cap
Every team is allocated a maximum total that can be spent on all its players' salaries combined — the salary cap, set annually by the CBA. It was US $116 million per team in 2008, rising to US $127 million in 2009, and forces managers to assemble the best team possible within a fixed budget.
Signing Bonus
When a team signs a new player it pays a signing bonus, often a huge sum used to lure talent. Because of the salary cap, the bonus is spread across several years as stated in the contract, and players make huge money from bonuses alone.
Average NFL Player Salaries
The average NFL player salary for 2009 was around US $770,000, the average base salary around US $990,000, and the average signing bonus approximately US $1.3–1.34 million.
Average NFL Salary by Position
The position a player fills, and how instrumental he is to the team, is a major determinant of pay — so it is no surprise that quarterbacks earn the most. Based on the NFLPA figures, the average salary by position works out roughly as:
- Quarterback — $1,970,982
- Defensive End — $1,583,784
- Offensive Line — $1,267,402
- Defensive Tackle — $1,223,925
- Cornerback — $1,193,666
- Linebacker — $1,175,788
- Wide Receiver — $1,054,437
- Running Back — $957,360
- Safety — $947,847
- Punter / Kicker — $868,005 – $1,051,131
- Tight End — $863,414
These figures are fluid and change constantly, so they are only meant to give an idea.
Top NFL Player Salaries
Following is a list of the 6 top NFL player salaries for the year 2009, by average annual salary:
- Julius Peppers, Carolina Panthers — US $16.683M
- Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals — US $16.166M
- Eli Manning, New York Giants — US $15.285M
- Nnamdi Asomugha, Oakland Raiders — US $15.155M
- Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers — US $14.664M
- Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts — US $14M
By team, the New York Giants spent the most on player remuneration in 2009, followed by the Miami Dolphins, Houston Texans, New Orleans Saints and Chicago Bears. These figures make the league's players look very rich, yet they are modest compared with NBA and Major League Baseball salaries, despite football being a more combative and physically tougher sport. The nature of NFL salaries is also such that in the case of a breach of contract, retirement or injury, the team is not liable to pay the player — but in any case, the players do tend to make a lot of hay while the sun shines.
