Introducing the NFL's All-Overpaid Team Before Week 1 of 2025 Season

Now that the vast majority of the major deals have been signed ahead of the 2025 NFL season, it's time to take an updated look at who's getting paid what. 

In this case, it's the guys who aren't pulling their weight considering their massive salaries. 

Here are the league's most overpaid players at each position. 

All contract and cap details via Spotrac.

Quarterback: Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns

AP Photo/Chris Szagola

Contract: Five years, $230 million (fully guaranteed)

Watson's contract remains the most obvious example on this list. He's had just nine wins since joining the Browns in 2022—and will likely miss most or all of 2025 with an Achilles injury.

Even if he did recover this year, there's a good chance he wouldn't see action simply because the Browns have several other options under center, and his 80.7 passer rating in Cleveland is horrendous. 

He hasn't been a significant contributor since 2020, yet he's set to cost the Browns over $126 million against the cap in the next two seasons. They'll inevitably find a way to rejig that, but it's awfully painful regardless. 

Runner-up: Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars (five years, $275 million with $200 million guaranteed)

There were three other quality options here, including Lawrence, Dak Prescott ($60 million per season over four years) and Tua Tagovailoa ($53.1 million per season over four). All three rank among the six highest-paid players in the game despite consistently falling short. 

But at least Prescott has at times played at a superstar level. In fact, he was MVP runner-up just two years ago. And he's helped the Cowboys get to the playoffs on a handful of occasions. Meanwhile, Tagovailoa has had his struggles with injuries and big-game performances but has put up triple-digit passer ratings in three consecutive campaigns. 

Lawrence, though, has failed to lead the Jaguars to a single double-digit-win season in his four-year career. Dating back to his 2022 rookie campaign, he ranks 20th among 23 qualified quarterbacks with a 90.6 passer rating. 

Unfortunately for the Jags, they owe him $123 million over the next four years with room only to push some of that down the road.

Running Back: Rhamondre Stevenson, New England Patriots

AP Photo/Peter Joneleit

Contract: Four years, $36 million ($17.1 million guaranteed)

While this contract won't cripple the Patriots' cap, it was surprising they paid so much for a fourth-round pick who's been unspectacular through three seasons. Little has changed since.

Stevenson has 23 total touchdowns in four years. He's never rushed for more than 1,040 yards and has just one 1,000-yard season from scrimmage under his belt. He averaged a career-low 3.9 yards per carry in 2024, and was at one point demoted for fumbling issues. 

With rookie second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson joining the fray in New England this season, there's a chance the Patriots find themselves wondering if they're better off biting an $8.1 million bullet to move on from Stevenson next offseason. 

Runner-up: Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints (two years, $24.5 million with $19.2 million guaranteed)

Kamara's had a fantastic career, but he'll count nearly $16.2 million against the cap for the noncompetitive Saints in 2025. Meanwhile, it will cost them another $18.3 million to move on next offseason. 

That's a tough spot considering the five-time Pro Bowler is now on the wrong side of 30 and has scored just 18 touchdowns the last three years. Wear and tear have factored in, but that all counts at this point in a running back's career. 

Why did they give him this deal last fall? 

Wide Receiver: Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals

AP Photo/Chris Szagola

Contract: Four years, $115 million ($40.9 million guaranteed)

It's understandable the Bengals wanted to keep the band together this offseason, but they reached with this new deal for the good-not-great, often-unreliable Higgins. 

The 26-year-old's production hasn't matched that of most top-12-paid receivers. He has yet to reach 80 catches, 1,100 yards, or 10-plus touchdowns in a season. Durability is also a concern—he's missed multiple games each of the last two years.

However, the Bengals are realistically locked in for at least $58 million over the course of the next couple of seasons. 

It looks like a major overpay, but if he helps this team finally capture a championship it won't matter. 

Runner-up: Jaylen Waddle, Miami Dolphins (three years, $84.8 million with $76 million guaranteed)

This could have gone to either of Miami's top two receivers, as Tyreek Hill was a huge disappointment with a $30 million AAV in 2024 and may be beyond his prime at 31. But if he can stay healthy and focused, he can still dominate, and his resume gets him some extra credit. 

Waddle doesn't really have the dominant history or the resume, but he is the 12th-highest-paid wideout in football after signing that extension last offseason. And that hefty guarantee has the Dolphins on the hook for a $33.8 million cap hit two years from now.

He's still only 26, with room to grow, but the fact is the 2021 No. 6 overall pick has scored just six total touchdowns the last two years combined and his drop rate exploded to nearly 10 percent in 2024. 

A player with just one 1,100-yard pro campaign may have peaked early in his career, before he became extremely expensive.

Tight End: T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings

AP Photo/Matt Krohn

Contract: Four years, $66 million ($40.2 million guaranteed)

At 28, T.J. Hockenson may be trending toward "bust" status.

The top-10 pick from 2019 flirted with success in his entry-level tenure with Detroit and flashed at times during his first full campaign with Minnesota, but a major knee injury suffered late that year sunk much of his 2024 season. He returned to play 10 games but averaged just 45.5 yards per outing and didn't score a single touchdown. 

In fact, Hockenson has scored just 23 times in his six-year NFL run. He's gone over 750 yards just twice and has never hit the 1,000-yard plateau, and injuries have again been a factor this offseason for a guy who just hasn't been consistently durable or a regular playmaker in his career. 

Meanwhile, the Vikings owe him $16.6 million in 2025, $21.4 million in 2026 and $23.4 million in 2027. 

Runner-up: Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs (two years, $32.3 million with $17 million guaranteed)

In what might be his last season in the NFL, the 35-year-old Kelce will cost the Chiefs $19.8 million in the final year of his current contract. The good news is he won't cost them anything beyond that, but that's still wild money for a guy who is declining fast. 

Kelce's touchdown total dropped from 12 in 2022 to five in 2023 to three in 2024, and he was held to just six catches for 58 yards in the AFC title game and Super Bowl combined in last year's playoffs. And in the regular season, his yards-per-target total of 6.2 ranked 30th among 34 qualified tight ends. 

The Chiefs will need a lot more from him in 2025, especially at a rate of nearly $20 million against the cap. 

Offensive Tackle: Dan Moore Jr., Tennessee Titans

AP Photo/Peter Joneleit

Contract: Four years, $82 million ($50 million guaranteed)

Moore gave up a league-high 12 sacks in 2024, according to Pro Football Focus, and he's never sniffed a Pro Bowl while posting so-so grades throughout his four-year career. 

The 26-year-old was only a fourth-round pick in 2021 and has looked like a borderline starting-caliber player for much of his career thus far. It's puzzling that the rebuilding Titans gave him a four-year, $82 million deal; Moore has yet to prove he's worth a top-12 tackle salary.

Runner-up: Laremy Tunsil, Washington Commanders (three years, $75 million with $60 million guaranteed)

This is a little complicated because Tunsil can at times be dominant and has a strong resume that includes five Pro Bowls. And because the Houston Texans are still picking up much of the tab on a contract they handed to him in 2023, his deal isn't too unfriendly to Washington. 

Still, he'll cost $21.35 million in 2025 and the same if they want to keep him around in 2026 (or more over time if they feel obligated to extend him). But at 31 he may have lost a step, and the ridiculous 19 penalties he took in 2024 may be evidence of that. 

The Texans had major problems protecting quarterback C.J. Stroud in 2024. Their decision to trade Tunsil away may speak volumes about his actual value, and he remains one of the seven highest-paid offensive linemen in the league. 

Interior Offensive Line: G Aaron Banks, Green Bay Packers

AP Photo/Kayla Wolf

Contract: Four years, $77 million ($27 million guaranteed)

Offensive line experience and continuity is important, but the Packers are handing a lot of cash to two good-not-great guards (Banks and Elgton Jenkins).

In fact, both rank among the 12 highest-paid players in the sport at that position, despite the fact that they've made a combined two Pro Bowls in 10 seasons. 

Banks has zero of those Pro Bowl nods, but he has the bigger deal following a move to Green Bay in free agency this offseason.

He's now the sixth-highest-paid interior offensive lineman in the league, but the 2021 second-round pick didn't do much to earn that during a four-year run in San Francisco in which he lacked consistency and put up generally shoddy PFF grades. 

Runner-up: C Lloyd Cushenberry III, Tennessee Titans (four years, $50 million with $30 million guaranteed)

The Titans will find 40 percent of their starting offensive line on this team. Cushenberry has fed off a really strong contract year with the Broncos in 2023, which led to his big-money deal with Tennessee. But he's missed the majority of two of his last three seasons and has never been a Pro Bowler or All-Pro. 

That could still change, but he is almost 28 and coming off a major injury as the fourth-highest-paid center in the NFL. 

Interior Defensive Line: Alim McNeill, Detroit Lions

AP Photo/Zach Bolinger

Contract: Four years, $97 million ($55.1 million guaranteed)

The good news is McNeill's 2024 contract extension won't kick in until after a 2025 campaign in which he costs the Lions just $6.1 million. The bad news is he'll count nearly $29 million against the cap in 2026 alone, and that'll only rise in 2027 and 2028. 

At 25, he has little time to bolster his game, especially as he's still recovering from a major knee injury that could limit him this season. And prior to that, he was a zero-time Pro Bowler with 11.5 sacks and two forced fumbles in his four-year career. 

That just doesn't cut it for a guy who is earning the league's fifth-highest salary at his position. 

Runner-up: Daron Payne, Washington Commanders (four years, $90 million with $59 million guaranteed)

Payne delivered huge in a contract year in 2022, earning a Pro Bowl nod with a career-best 11.5 sacks while playing under the fifth-year option in his rookie contract. 

He wasn't the same before that and hasn't been the same since. 

The steady 28-year-old never misses action, but he has failed to surpass the five-sack mark in six of his seven pro campaigns and has just two forced fumbles the last four years. Now, he's coming off the worst season of his career based on PFF grades, and he's becoming super expensive. 

If the Commanders give up on him next offseason, he'll essentially cost them $37 million this year. If they keep him around and nothing changes with his current deal, he'll cost more than $54 million over the course of the next two campaigns. 

Edge Defender: Montez Sweat, Chicago Bears

AP Photo/Kamil Krzaczynski

Contract: Four years, $98 million ($62.9 million guaranteed)

We'll preface this with the fact that Montez Sweat may have been better than his raw numbers in 2024, as he was used as a pure rusher less than in the past and he got a lot of pressure that didn't register. 

That said, if you've committed nearly $25 million per year to an edge, you need more than 5.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and 13 quarterback hits. 

He ranked outside of the top five in sacks, QB hits and tackles for loss, despite the fact that he's the seventh-highest-paid player in the NFL at that position. 

And it wasn't as though that was a fluke. The 2019 first-round pick has just one double-digit-sack campaign and one Pro Bowl nod in his career. 

Runner-up: Nick Bosa, San Francisco 49ers (five years, $170 million with $122.5 million guaranteed)

Bosa may eventually be a Hall of Famer, and he remains one of the most dangerous defensive players in the game. 

That doesn't mean he isn't overpaid. 

The fact is, the five-time Pro Bowler has been a first-team All-Pro just once. That 2022 season was also his only campaign with an approximate value above 12 (the teens are usually reserved for the top handful of players at the edge defender position), and it was one of only two seasons on his resume with 12-plus sacks. 

The soon-to-be 28-year-old has forced just three fumbles the last two years after forcing six during the preceding two seasons. Right now, it looks as though he peaked when registering 34 of his 62.5 career sacks in 2021 and 2022, but he remains the highest-paid edge in the league in terms of total contract value. 

Linebacker: Tremaine Edmunds, Chicago Bears

AP Photo/Kamil Krzaczynski

Contract: Four years, $72 million ($50 million guaranteed)

This headline 2023 free-agent signing hasn't really panned out for the Bears, who invested massive money in an off-ball linebacker with two Pro Bowls on his resume but have thus far received so-so results. 

Edmunds is a solid player who racks up tackles, and he did have four interceptions in 2023. But he's now posted four straight single-digit AVs since going to the Pro Bowl with the Bills in 2019 and 2020. 

The 27-year-old hasn't been a playmaker like he was in his early Buffalo days, and that four-pick 2023 campaign in Chicago looks like an aberration. Yet only four-time first-team All-Pro Fred Warner earns a higher salary among off-ball linebackers. 

Runner-up: Jamien Sherwood, New York Jets (three years, $45 million with $30 million guaranteed)

Sherwood had a great 2024 season, and there's still room for the 25-year-old to become something special. But considering he has 2.5 career sacks, zero picks, three quarterback hits and just the one standout season in general, the Jets are taking a big risk with a massive deal for an off-ball linebacker who was merely a fifth-round pick in 2021. 

Sherwood needs to build on his breakout 2024 campaign quickly and substantially, or the Jets and their fans will start to wonder about that $19 million cap hit for 2027. 

Cornerback: Sauce Gardner, New York Jets

AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps

Contract: Four years, $120 million ($85.4 million guaranteed)

We're honing in on two new contracts from this offseason here, both belonging to young first-round picks who could eventually live up to the huge money on the table but have a lot of work to do. 

We start with Gardner, who became the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history last month. And yes, the 25-year-old was a legend as a rookie in 2022, but he has fallen off in each of his last two campaigns, with penalties and missed tackles becoming problematic all too often. 

Gardner surrendered 5.3 yards per target as a rookie, 6.0 as a sophomore and 9.3 during his third year in the league. He also has lacked playmaking ability, with just three interceptions in three seasons. 

There's plenty of time for him to rebound, but it's still terrifying that the Jets owe him more than $53 million in guaranteed cash for 2027 and 2028 alone.

That's a long way out. 

Runner-up: Jaycee Horn, Carolina Panthers (four years, $100 million with $72 million guaranteed)

Also 25, Horn has one interception the last two seasons and surrendered six touchdowns in coverage in 2024 but is now making $25 million per year as the third-highest-paid corner in the sport. 

He was a Pro Bowler while averaging 6.2 yards allowed per target in his third season, so there were extremes on both sides. But the value just hasn't been there overall, and the Panthers will need a lot more consistency, productivity and big plays from their now-very-rich top cover man. 

Safety: Antoine Winfield Jr., Tampa Bay Buccaneers

AP Photo/Chris O'Meara

Contract: Four years, $84.1 million ($45 million guaranteed)

Winfield broke the bank last year after intercepting six passes to earn first-team All-Pro honors in 2023, but he was far less productive and efficient when healthy in 2024 and injuries have become a legitimate concern. 

The 27-year-old has now missed 16 games the last four years and has been dealing with hamstring issues this summer. 

Winfield is five years into his career now, and he's only had one great season. He's off to a rough start in Year 6, and he's scheduled to earn more than $55 million in 2026 and 2027 combined. 

Runner-up: Jevon Holland, New York Giants (three years, $45.5 million with $30 million guaranteed)

Holland was a hot commodity on this year's free-agent market, and he landed a huge payday by being in the right place at the right time. He got similar money to Camryn Bynum in Indianapolis, despite the fact that he hasn't measured up to Bynum on the field. 

The 25-year-old has never posted an AV above six, he has just one interception the last two years combined, and his PFF grade has ranked outside of the top 50 at his position in two of the last three seasons. 

Yet the Giants now owe him more than $30 million over the next two years, and a lot more than that if they opt to keep him for 2027.