Here’s How Much Odell Beckham Jr., Aaron Rodgers and The Highest-Paid Players on Every NFL Team Make

Player contracts in the National Football League are complex, and all 32 teams employ experts who work to put together rosters that fit the team’s needs on the field and their “budgets” off of it. A team’s budget actually is the league’s salary cap, which is the limit it can pay the 53 players on the roster combined. The salary cap for the 2021 season is $182.5 million.

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While that sounds like a lot of cash to throw around to players, it really isn’t when you consider teams could have just one player whose pay in one year can account for 10% — or much more — of a team’s salary cap. That’s why teams feature a mix of players earning superstar money, well-compensated veterans, and lower-paid rookies along with layers plucked from the waiver wire.

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A salary cap “hit,” as it is called, is more than just a player’s base pay. It accounts for various components of a player’s contract, including salary, plus signing bonuses spread across the life of the contract as well as other bonuses and incentives. 

As the calendar turns to September and the start of the 2021 NFL season, just which players will earn the most cash this season, and how much of that precious salary cap are they gobbling up? GOBankingRates ranked the highest-paid player on each NFL team according to their salary cap hit for the 2021 season.

Take a closer look at who earns the most on your favorite NFL squad.

Last updated: Sep. 2, 2021

• Player: Marcus Williams
• Position: Free safety
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $10,612,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $10,612,000

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• Player: Dion Dawkins
• Position: Left tackle
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $11,380,294
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $7,300,000

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• Player: Robby Anderson
• Position: Wide receiver
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $12,000,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $8,000,000

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• Player: Corey Davis
• Position: Wide receiver
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $12,666,666
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $7,000,000

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• Player: James Bradberry
• Position: Cornerback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $13,250,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $5,900,000

• Player: Andrew Norwell
• Position: Guard
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $15,000,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $12,000,000

• Player: Ronnie Stanley
• Position: Tackle
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $15,250,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $7,500,000

• Player: Julio Jones
• Position: Wide receiver
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $15,300,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $15,300,000

• Player: Odell Beckham Jr.
• Position: Wide receiver
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $15,750,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $14,500,000

• Player: Trae Waynes
• Position: Cornerback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $15,800,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $8,400,000

• Player: Deshaun Watson
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $15,940,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $10,540,000

• Player: Byron Jones
• Position: Cornerback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $16,100,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $14,000,000

• Player: Stephon Gilmore
• Position: Cornerback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $16,265,595
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $7,000,000

• Player: Mike Evans
• Position: Wide receiver
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $16,637,500
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $12,250,000

• Player: Allen Robinson
• Position: Wide receiver
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $17,980,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $17,880,000

• Player: Brandon Scherff
• Position: Guard
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $18,036,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $18,036,000

• Player: Trey Flowers
• Position: Defensive end
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $19,989,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $14,375,000

• Player: Matthew Stafford
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $20,000,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $9,500,000

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• Player: Joey Bosa
• Position: Defensive end
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $20,750,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $13,750,000

• Player: Chandler Jones
• Position: Outside linebacker
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $20,833,334
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $15,500,000

• Player: Carson Wentz
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $21,305,882
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $15,400,000

• Player: Derek Carr
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $22,125,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $19,525,000

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• Player: Von Miller
• Position: Outside linebacker
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $22,225,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $17,500,000

• Player: Fletcher Cox
• Position: Defensive tackle
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $23,880,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $15,000,000

• Player: DeMarcus Lawrence
• Position: Defensive end
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $25,000,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $17,000,000

• Player: Frank Clark
• Position: Defensive end
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $25,800,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $18,500,000

• Player: Ben Roethlisberger
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $25,910,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $1,075,000

• Player: Jimmy Garoppolo
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $26,382,352
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $24,100,000

• Player: Matt Ryan
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $26,912,500
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $2,000,000

• Player: Aaron Rodgers
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $27,073,568
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $1,100,000

• Player: Kirk Cousins
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $31,000,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $21,000,000

• Player: Russell Wilson
• Position: Quarterback
• 2021 cap hit (upcoming season): $32,000,000
• 2021 base salary (upcoming season): $19,000,000

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Jami Farkas contributed to the reporting for this article. 

Methodology: To find the highest-paid player on every NFL team, GOBankingRates used Spotrac’s salary rankings data for the upcoming 2021 NFL season. The highest-paid player on each team was determined in terms of cap hit, but the player’s base salary for the season was included as supplemental data. All data and figures were collected and are up to date as of Aug. 25, 2021.

Photo disclaimer: Images are for representational purposes only and may not reflect the player’s current team.