The 10 Most Overpaid NFL Players, Ranked

The NFL has no shortage of players who haven’t matched their contracts with quality production. But some of those players stand out among the rest, as their financial impact has crippled their respective franchises due to how ineffective they have been on the field.

Let’s take a look at the top 10 most overpaid players in the NFL, starting with No. 10.

NOTE: All contractual figures mentioned are from Over The Cap.

10. New Orleans Saints TE Taysom Hill

Taysom Hill is nothing more than a gadget player for the New Orleans Saints, which is evident in the team turning to rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler this year when veteran Derek Carr went down with an oblique injury. But Hill is getting paid $20 million in 2024 and 2025 combined to get 5-10 touches per game, whether it be as a tight end or however else the Saints decide to deploy him at the ripe age of 34. That’s an overpay for a player who has some but overall very little involvement on special teams as well.

9. Dallas Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs

Trevon Diggs is getting paid $12 million in cash for the 2024 season — which ranks 14th among all cornerbacks — yet ranks 96th among all cornerbacks in PFF coverage grade through six games. He also has just one interception on the season and no other turnovers forced. Diggs received his $97 million contract with the Dallas Cowboys because of his playmaking ability in the secondary, yet he’s not making any big plays right now and is also susceptible to giving up big plays.

8. Carolina Panthers RB Miles Sanders

Miles Sanders, who signed a four-year, $25.4 million contract with the Carolina Panthers in 2023, is nothing more than a primary backup in Carolina’s backfield. And when 2024 second-round pick Jonathon Brooks finally takes the field, Sanders will be relegated to RB3 on the depth chart. This is all while Sanders is owed $13.8 million in base salary from 2024-2026. Based on total contract value, Sanders is being paid like he’s a top 7 running back in the NFL, yet he’s producing like he barely deserves a roster spot in Carolina

7. Saints DE Cameron Jordan

The Saints gave tenured veteran Cameron Jordan a $12.6 million signing bonus in early 2024 as a means to clear up some cap space. But Jordan has done very little to merit getting some forwarded cash. He has only played 44% of the team’s defensive snaps this season and is on pace to set career lows across all statistical categories. On top of that, Jordan has a $12.5 million base salary in 2025 and will have a $20 million cap hit, making him very overpaid when considering his lack of on-field production.

6. Jaguars WR Christian Kirk

Christian Kirk received $37 million fully guaranteed from the four-year, $72 million contract deal signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2022, which ranks 13th among all NFL receivers. Yet during the 2023 season, Kirk, who is primarily a slot receiver, ranked 43rd among wideouts in receiving yards and is currently not in the top 30 in receiving yards for the 2024 season. He also has just five touchdowns over his last 25 games regular season games played. Simply put, he’s not producing like he’s being paid, though that’s not entirely his fault, as the Jaguars’ offense has been very inconsistent during his tenure in Jacksonville.

5. Rams WR Cooper Kupp

Cooper Kupp is undoubtedly one of the best receivers in the NFL when he is healthy. And he gets paid like he’s a top-10 receiver in the league. But the Los Angeles Rams’ wideout has missed a total of 13 games over the last two seasons and has missed several games already during the 2024 season. Durability plays largely into whether someone is overpaid, and the 31-year-old Kupp getting $40 million in cash in 2024 and 2025 combined seems like it will be an overpay based on how inconsistently he is on the field.

4. Titans WR Calvin Ridley

Calvin Ridley is getting paid $25 million in 2024, which ranks fifth among all receivers, yet ranks outside the top 100 in receiving yards among receivers for the 2024 season. Dismal quarterback play has largely factored into Ridley’s lack of production this season. Still, regardless of whose fault it is, not getting the production the Tennessee Titans need out of a 30-year-old player making that much money is an overpay.

3. Commanders DT Daron Payne

Daron Payne is owed $16.5 million in 2024, with that number increasing over each of the next two years. His 2024 figure ranks 12th among defensive interior linemen and his 2025 and 2026 cash owed amounts rank sixth among defensive tackles. But he currently is just 35th among defensive interior linemen in PFF pass rush win percentage (12.1%) and is 79th in run defense grade (57.0) on the season. That’s a gross overpay for someone who is being paid like a cornerstone piece of the Washington Commanders.

2. Giants QB Daniel Jones

Daniel Jones is as average as it gets at the quarterback position in the NFL yet he will be paid like one of the league’s best over the next three years. He is owed $36 million, $30.5 million, and $47.5 million from 2024-2026 respectively, with the latter two figures putting him top 10 amongst quarterbacks. He has not developed into a player that would be worth that type of money if he became one of the better dual-threat QBs in the NFL. Instead, Jones is the type of player who needs supreme talent around him to succeed, but the New York Giants don’t have the money to do that because of Jones’s contract.

1. Browns QB Deshaun Watson

Deshaun Watson is the seventh-highest-paid QB in the NFL in 2024 yet is outside the top 20 in passer rating, passing yards, and passing touchdowns to start the season. He has been one of the worst quarterbacks in the league since joining the Cleveland Browns in 2022, and it’s apparent this season that his best playing days are well behind him. To make matters worse, Watson is owed $46 million in 2025, which ranks fifth among quarterbacks, so the end isn’t in sight for Cleveland unless the team decides to eat hundreds of millions of dollars in dead money over the next several years. Watson’s contract is arguably the worst in NFL history, which makes him unquestionably the most overpaid NFL player in 2024.

Did we nail the list? Who’d we overlook? Sound off in the comments.

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