Ranking 10 Worst Contracts in NFL Ahead of 2026 Season

Some major extensions will likely still be signed, and some blockbuster deals will likely still be reworked. But generally speaking, we have a broad sense of what the NFL's financial scene will look like in 2026. 

With that in mind, and with offseason work heating up, we have an opportunity to take a look at deals that are particularly problematic. 

Here are the NFL's 10 worst contracts entering the 2026 season. 

Contract information courtesy of Spotrac

10. Carolina Panthers Edge Jaelan Phillips

AP Photo/Nell Redmond

The Contract: 4 years, $120 million with $80 million guaranteed (signed in 2026)

The Problem: Injuries cost him the vast majority of 2023 and 2024 with the Dolphins before they moved on, and he managed just two sacks in eight games as an Eagles rental in 2025. Given he has yet to earn a first- or second-team All-Pro nod or a Pro Bowl selection in five NFL seasons, it's surprising he's one of just 13 defensive players in the $30 million AAV club.

The Kicker: Phillips is slated to cost the Panthers $38.8 million as a 30-year-old in 2029, unless the team dumps him before then. In that case, they'd have paid him $90 million over three presumably disappointing campaigns. 

9. Minnesota Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson

AP Photo/Abbie Parr

The Contract: 4 years, $66 million with $40.2 million guaranteed (extension signed in 2023)

The Problem: The nearly 29-year-old has scored just three touchdowns since the start of 2024 and has fallen short of 500 yards in each of the last two seasons. His body might not have a lot left. 

The Kicker: Hockenson is the third-highest-paid tight end in the sport and carries the top salary-cap hit at the position in 2026, despite the fact the team reworked his deal in March. There's also no more wiggle room as he's entering a contract year. 

8. Las Vegas Raiders Edge Maxx Crosby

AP Photo/Lucas Peltier

The Contract: 3 years, $106.5 million with $91.5 million guaranteed (signed in 2025)

The Problem: After putting up a combined 27 sacks in 2022 and 2023, the seven-year veteran has failed to top 10 sacks in either of the last two seasons. He'll turn 29 this summer, and a continued decline is inevitable. 

The Kicker: The Raiders are pretty much stuck paying him more than $65 million over the course of the next two years. They tried trading him this offseason for a reason. 

7. Baltimore Ravens Edge Trey Hendrickson

AP Photo/Nick Wass

The Contract: 4 years, $112 million with $60 million guaranteed (signed in 2026)

The Problem: The 31-year-old is coming off a season derailed by lingering core muscle injuries. There's a good chance that contributes to his decline entering his 10th season, paving the way for this panic signing to backfire on the Ravens.

The Kicker: Hendrickson is slated to cost the team $34.5 million in his age-35 season in 2029. Watch for the Ravens to wind up paying a $27 million dead-cap charge just to make him go away in 2028. 

6. Kansas City Chiefs DL Chris Jones

AP Photo/David Becker

The Contract: 5 years, $158.8 million with $95 million guaranteed (signed in 2024)

The Problem: The soon-to-be 32-year-old's approximate value total at Pro Football Reference has dropped significantly in back-to-back campaigns as he continues to drift away from his prime. 

The Kicker: Jones' $44.9 million 2026 cap hit is the fourth-largest in the NFL this season, and easily the largest among non-quarterbacks. That's about 15 percent of the entire Chiefs' payroll! He's also slated to cost nearly $83 million in 2027 and 2028 combined. 

5. Pittsburgh Steelers Edge T.J. Watt

AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar

The Contract: 3 years, $123 million with $108 million guaranteed (signed in 2025)

The Problem: The 31-year-old's sack numbers have plummeted from 19 in 2023 to 11.5 in 2024 to seven in 2025. This was his first relatively full non-All-Pro season since 2018, indicating that a decline is well underway. 

The Kicker: Even if the Steelers move on after the 2027 campaign, Watt will have cost the team $94 million in salary and dead-cap charges for just two seasons of work. 

4. San Francisco 49ers Edge Nick Bosa

AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman

The Contract: 5 years, $170 million with $122.5 million guaranteed (signed in 2023)

The Problem: The 28-year-old's production fell off markedly in back-to-back seasons before he missed all but three games in 2025. It appears he peaked as Defensive Player of the Year in 2022.

The Kicker: They'd have to pay Bosa just shy of $50 million simply to move on after the 2026 campaign, which likely means he's locked in at a current cap hit of $54.9 million for his age-30 campaign (highest by a mile among defensive players). 

3. Tennessee Titans OT Dan Moore Jr.

AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack

The Contract: 4 years, $82 million with $50 million guaranteed (signed in 2025)

The Problem: Even before signing this deal, Moore had surrendered a league-high 12 sacks in 2024 and was a fourth-round pick who never really performed better than a borderline starter with the Steelers. In his debut season in Tennessee, the 27-year-old gave up eight more sacks and ranked 44th among 58 qualified offensive tackles at Pro Football Focus.

The Kicker: Essentially, the Titans can pay him $39.1 million to play in 2026 and then go away, or they can keep him around for the next two seasons at a cost of $48.5 million. That AAV would rank ninth among all NFL offensive linemen.

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin

AP Photo/Chris O'Meara

The Contract: 3 years, $66 million with $44 million guaranteed (signed in 2025)

The Problem: The 30-year-old has failed to play in double-digit games in back-to-back seasons and his productivity when healthy plummeted in 2025. Godwin hasn't put up 1,200 yards or scored eight touchdowns since 2019, which is also the last time he was a Pro Bowler or All-Pro. 

The Kicker: His $33.7 million 2026 cap hit ranks No. 1 among wide receivers, and the team would have to bite the bullet on a $16.2 million dead-cap charge to move on in 2027. 

1. Cleveland Browns QB Deshaun Watson

AP Photo/David Dermer

The Contract: 5 years, $230 million with $230 million guaranteed (signed in 2022)

The Problem: Four years into that infamous deal, Watson has thrown a grand total of 19 touchdown passes in 19 starts. He hasn't been an effective NFL player since 2020, and that's extremely unlikely to suddenly change in his age-31 season. 

The Kicker: The former Pro Bowler will count nearly $45 million against the cap in a walk year—the third-highest hit in the NFL.