Patrick Mahomes falls outside 2026 top quarterback pay as Prescott leads at $60 million
NFL quarterback pay in 2026 will keep tilting toward a small group at the very top, reshaping how teams allocate money at the game’s most expensive position. At 9: 00 am ET, a new breakdown of 2026 quarterback contracts underscored that patrick mahomes does not sit among the top earners by average annual value.
Dak Prescott sets the 2026 pace at $60 million per season
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott stands alone as the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback by average annual value at $60 million a season. That rate comes from a four-year, $260 million deal signed in 2024 that keeps him with the team through 2028, setting a salary benchmark other elite contracts now chase.
Josh Allen and three more quarterbacks cluster at $55 million APY
A second tier forms immediately behind Prescott: four players are tied at $55 million in average annual value, beginning with Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen. Allen is entering the second year of a six-year, $330 million deal in 2026; Joe Burrow is tied on the same APY after signing a five-year, $275 million deal in 2023; Trevor Lawrence’s five-year, $275 million contract kicked in for the 2025 season; and Jordan Love is in year two of a four-year, $220 million pact that runs through 2028.
Patrick Mahomes and the next contract wave shaped by Purdy and Tagovailoa moves
That top-end clustering helps explain why patrick mahomes is not positioned among the highest-paid names in the 2026 APY rankings referenced in the latest coverage. Elsewhere on the list, several contracts illustrate how quickly quarterback economics can change: Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers agreed to a five-year, $265 million contract in 2025 that kicks in for the 2026 season, while the Miami Dolphins are set to move on from Tua Tagovailoa in the offseason despite him having three years left on his four-year, $212. 4 million deal, forcing Miami to take a significant cap hit.
The next acceleration point comes when new extensions get negotiated for quarterbacks already on major deals, including Lamar Jackson, who is entering the fourth year of his five-year, $260 million contract and is described as due for a new extension soon. If that extension arrives before the next season cycle is complete, it could reset the top of the market again and further widen the gap between the highest APY tier and everyone else.
