NFL Free Agency: An Early Look at Players Poised for Mega 2019 Paydays

Every player enters the NFL with three dreams. 

The first is to make a team. The second is win a Super Bowl.

There's another goal that's just as rare: hitting free agency as a top target at their respective position. 

For some of the players featured below, that day has already come. They aren't hurting for money as they attempt to land one last big deal.

However, many of the players here are coming off of their rookie contracts. They still have one more season before they hit the jackpot, but a windfall is likely coming next spring.

Matt Ryan, QB, Atlanta Falcons

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Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan recently said he isn't concerned about negotiations on a new deal as he enters a contract year in 2018, according to Kelsey Conway of the team website.

"As far as timeframe or anything like that, I think it will shake out and handle itself," Ryan said. "I'm not sure if it will be today, tomorrow or in a couple of weeks, but I really think we are moving in the right direction. I'm excited to be here, that's the biggest thing, and I think all of those things will take care of itself."

It's easier to relax about such things when you're on a collision course with a nine-figure contract.

The San Francisco 49ers just gave a five-year, $137.5 million contract to Jimmy Garoppolo, who has seven career starts. The Minnesota Vikings handed Kirk Cousins $84 million over three years—all fully guaranteed.

Cousins has never won a playoff game. His regular-season career record is 26-30-1.

Ryan has a regular-season record of 95-63 in his 10 years with the Falcons. He's played in 10 playoff games, including Super Bowl LI. Ryan has topped 4,000 passing yards in seven straight seasons, has over twice as many touchdowns as interceptions and was the NFL MVP in 2016.

At some point over the next year, Ryan is going to become one of the highest-paid players in football, if not the highest.

Aaron Donald, DL, Los Angeles Rams

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Like Matt Ryan, Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald has virtually zero chance of hitting the open market. 

And like Ryan, Donald is about to sign a monster contract.

During a recent appearance on The MMQB Podcast with Peter King, Rams general manager made it clear that Donald is on the verge of becoming the NFL's highest-paid defensive player, per Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk. You'd be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn't believe he deserves it.

At just 26 years old, Donald has already established himself as the NFL's best player at his position and one of the league's most intimidating defenders. He's been named a first-time All-Pro three times, and after racking up 41 tackles, 11 sacks and five forced fumbles in 2017, he was named Defensive Player of the Year.

Donald is equally adept at crushing the dreams of tailbacks and giving quarterbacks recurring nightmares. He's also just entering his prime.

You pay a player like that whatever it takes.

Khalil Mack, EDGE, Oakland Raiders

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Aaron Donald isn't the only all-world defensive player entering the last year of his rookie contract who is about to receive approximately all of the money ever.

The NFL Defensive Player of the Year from the prior season is in a similarly opulent boat.

Oakland Raiders edge-rusher Khalil Mack was a no-show for the beginning of the team's offseason conditioning program, presumably due to his expiring contract. The 27-year-old is reportedly seeking at least $65 million in guarantees on a new deal, per Steve Wyche of NFL Network.

Raiders head coach Jon Gruden recently told reporters that he's confident the deal will get done.

"With Mack, obviously we've got to get him signed somehow," Gruden said. "But he is a spectacular player. And I don't think he's scratched the surface yet. I think if we can get an inside, a better inside pass rush, a more consistent inside rush, a dominant inside rusher, you'd see the best of this guy. Some of the plays that he's disrupted, that he hasn't gotten credit for, are really exciting for us to think what could happen."

The Silver and Black have plenty of motivation to lock Mack up. In each of the last three seasons, he has topped 70 total tackles and tallied at least 10.5 sacks despite facing constant double- and triple-teams.

The franchise tag is in play for Mack (and Donald, for that matter). However, it would be decidedly unwise to risk angering the team's best player with a one-year deal.

Write the check, pay the man and move on.

Le'Veon Bell, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

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In 2017, Pittsburgh Steelers tailback Le'Veon Bell sat out the entire offseason after the team slapped him with its franchise tag. The layoff did nothing to affect his level of play, as he piled up a career-high 406 total touches, topped 1,900 total yards and scored 11 touchdowns.

Perhaps in part because of that heavy workload, the Steelers applied the franchise tag to Bell for a second straight season this spring. The 26-year-old will make over $14.5 million in 2018, but his long-term future in the Steel City remains cloudy.

The contract drama has created tension on both sides. Bell, who is reportedly seeking a long-term deal that would pay at least $14.5 million per year, according to ESPN.com's Jeremy Fowler, feels like he's been made the villain of the story. The Steelers, on the other hand, are frustrated that Bell has taken his contract demands and unhappiness public, Fowler reported.

That's not to mention all of the workouts Bell won't be showing up for again.

When he's healthy, Bell is one of the NFL's most electrifying tailbacks. But he has a somewhat concerning injury history, and the Steelers are understandably reluctant to hand out one of the richest contracts ever offered at a position where players often start to tail off well before their 30th birthday.

While an extension remains possible, it's much more likely that the financial drama surrounding Bell is only getting started.

Odell Beckham, WR, New York Giants

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

Speaking of drama, let's talk about Odell Beckham.

If Beckham doesn't renegotiate his contract, he'll earn around $8.5 million on his fifth-year option in 2018. He's reportedly seeking $20 million per year on a new deal, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.

Those contractual demands and Beckham's latest off-field issue—a video featuring him, a woman and what appear to be some illicit substances—have led to a flood of speculation regarding everything from a prolonged holdout to a potential trade.

New Giants head coach Pat Shurmur tried to downplay the hullabaloo Monday while speaking with reporters at the start of the team's offseason workout program.

"I'm not worried about it. I really believe Odell is a professional," Shurmur said. "He wants to be great and he understands the importance of the offseason, and he's a competitive guy. "Again, we had already started communicating before all that information kind of got out there and was talked about to a great deal."

When he's on his game, Beckham is one of the league's most dangerous offensive threats. To his credit, he showed up for offseason conditioning despite his frustration with his contract. The odds are still in favor of the 25-year-old staying in the Big Apple beyond this season, either on a long-term deal or via the franchise tag.

But it isn't a certainty, especially if more drama continues to swirl around him that isn't related to what he does on Sunday afternoons.

Demarcus Lawrence, DE, Dallas Cowboys

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Every player listed so far is bound to get paid in 2019. It might be a one-year deal under the franchise tag, but all of them will make well north of $10 million in 2019. All five sign could deals that fall well north of $100 million total.

Dallas Cowboys edge-rusher Demarcus Lawrence will make a similarly gaudy chunk of change (over $17 million!) playing under the franchise tag in 2018. Whether he gets a megadeal afterward depends largely on his performance in the upcoming season.

The 25-year-old was a revelation for the Cowboys a season ago. He finished tied for second in the NFL with 14.5 sacks while adding 58 total tackles and four forced fumbles. But in his three previous seasons, Lawrence had more missed games (16) than sacks (nine).

As such, the Cowboys' decision to tag Lawrence is understandable. The team wants him to show he can replicate those numbers before it breaks the bank for him.

If Lawrence can rack up 10 or more sacks again in 2018, a $15 million annual salary will be the floor for a long-term deal.

And that isn't the only huge contract looming over The Star.

Zack Martin, OG, Dallas Cowboys

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In addition to deciding on Lawrence's future in Dallas, the Cowboys also have a choice to make with fifth-year guard Zack Martin.

Namely, they have to choose how many Brink's trucks they'll need for the 27-year-old's next deal.

From the moment he first set foot on an NFL field in 2014, Martin has played like the league's best interior offensive lineman. He made the Pro Bowl in each of his first four years in the league and was named a first-team All-Pro twice.

Martin has allowed a sack or a hit just once every 214 pass-blocking snaps over the past two years, per Pro Football Focus. No guard with at least 1,000 pass-blocking snaps has been better in that regard.

Kristi Scales, the sideline reporter for the Cowboys' radio network, recently praised Martin's approach to his next contract during a live chat with the Dallas Morning News.

"Martin and his agent were smart...they waited patiently for other players to set the market. Andrew Norwell, a very good guard, signed the most lucrative deal for a guard in NFL history last month. His five-year deal with the Jaguars is for five years and $66.5 million. His average earnings will be $13.3 million per season.  But more importantly is his $30 million guaranteed. And even more importantly, Kirk Cousins' deal with the Vikings is all guaranteed. Martin and his agent are going to reference the Cousins deal and try to wrangle a higher percentage of guaranteed money for a deal that will eclipse Norwell's deal with the Jaguars."

Get ready to break the bank, Jerruh.  

Landon Collins, S, New York Giants

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Beckham's potential extension isn't the only contractual cloud hanging over the Giants at the moment. Safety Landon Collins, who topped 100 total tackles in each of his first three years with the team, is likewise poised to become a free agent following the 2018 season.

As offseason workouts get underway, Collins told reporters Monday that he's focused solely on football for now.

"I'm just letting it just work itself out," Collins said. "I'm not really going through the negotiating part. I'm going to leave that between [general manager] Dave Gettleman and my agent and then go from there. From that point on, I'm just here trying to make new friends with my boys, new relationships and be a captain like I've always been."

However, Collins' road toward becoming the NFL's highest-paid safety recently hit a speed bump. 

NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported Wednesday that Collins' broken forearm isn't "healing as quickly as docs would hope," so he "might soon undergo surgery to plate the break again." While his timeline for recovery would put him back by training camp, per Garafolo, it's still a less-than-ideal situation. 

After establishing himself as one of the NFL's best at his position and a defensive leader for the Giants, an injury may be the only thing that can stop Collins from surpassing Kansas City's Eric Berry ($13 million a season) as the highest-paid safety in the game.

Jadeveon Clowney, EDGE, Houston Texans

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Houston Texans edge-rusher Jadeveon Clowney was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 draft after a career at the University of South Carolina that nearly included college football's first on-field decapitation. However, he didn't make the immediate impact that classmates such as Aaron Donald or Khalil Mack did.

A torn meniscus all but wiped out Clowney's rookie campaign, limiting him to only four regular-season games. Four years into his NFL career, Clowney has still yet to top 10 sacks in a season.

Given those less than stellar numbers, it's fair to wonder why the Texans are reportedly working on an extension for Clowney that will guarantee him somewhere around $18 million per season, according to Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports.

The answer to that question can be found in about five minutes of watching tape from Clowney's 9.5-sack campaign in 2017.

Clowney finally looked fully healthy last year. The ridiculous explosiveness and speed off the edge that caused Houston to take him first overall was on full display. The 6'5", 270-pounder was repeatedly in the backfield in the blink of an eye.

Paying Clowney that sort of scratch would devote well over $30 million of Houston's cap space to Clowney and J.J. Watt while shoring up one of the NFL's most formidable defensive fronts.

It would also make Mack and Donald's agents ecstatic. The same can't be said for the teams trying to re-up them, though.

Tyrod Taylor, QB, Cleveland Browns

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Stop rolling your eyes.

Yes, Cleveland Browns quarterback Tyrod Taylor is what he is. He's a high-floor, low-ceiling quarterback who won't kill a team with turnovers or gash opponents for 450 passing yards and four touchdowns.

The Browns acquired Taylor from the Buffalo Bills with what appears to be a clear vision in mind. They brought in the 28-year-old to be a bridge starter who will hold down the fort until the Browns' shiny new rookie quarterback is able to take the reins.

But if you set the baseline for what constitutes a huge payday at $14 million per season or so, Taylor will sail past it on his next deal.

If Taylor plays well in Cleveland in 2018 and the Browns win a few games (gasp!), they may decide not to fix that which is not broken. Whether it's as the starter or an insurance policy, having some depth at football's most important position would be a wild change of pace for a franchise that has lacked above-average quarterback play for decades.

The Browns might even tag Taylor, which would net him well over $20 million in 2019.

Even if the Browns move on, Taylor should have a market for his services if he doesn't faceplant in 2018. There are always more teams in need of competent quarterbacks then there are such players to go around.

Taylor isn't a world-beater, but with a career passer rating of 91.2 and a plus-33 touchdown-to-interception ratio, he is a competent signal-caller in his prime.

Geno Atkins, DT, Cincinnati Bengals

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Ndamukong Suh's done nothing but generate headlines since entering the league in 2010. Suh's made $100 million in guaranteed money alone in his career. And he'll likely command a hefty salary when he hits free agency again in the spring.

However, rather than talk about the guy everyone's always talking about, we'll instead focus on a similarly talented player who has spent his entire NFL career playing in Suh's shadow.

Geno Atkins of the Cincinnati Bengals entered the NFL the same year as both Suh and Gerald McCoy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But whereas Suh and McCoy were each top-five picks, Atkins didn't come off the board until the fourth round.

He was a steal. Over his nine NFL seasons, the 30-year-old Atkins has posted at least nine sacks four times, including each of the last three seasons. His 61 sacks over that span are more than Suh (51.5) or McCoy (48.5). Atkins has been named a Pro Bowler six times, including four straight years from 2014 through 2017.

Back in 2013, Atkins signed a five-year extension with the Bengals that paid him just under $11 million a year. That deal expires after the 2018 season.

If Atkins' posts another nine-sack season in 2018, he'll get a sizable raise and a fat chunk of guaranteed cabbage on his next contract.

Ronald Darby, CB, Philadelphia Eagles

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While Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Ronald Darby has shown promising flashes in his first three NFL seasons, he won't make many lists of the NFL's best cover men. In fact, he already changed teams once after the Bills shipped him to Philly in mid-August.

But while Darby isn't the NFL's best corner, he's in a potentially lucrative position. Though he missed half of the 2017 season, he could be the best cornerback set to hit the open market next spring.

Since the start of the new league year, Trumaine Johnson landed a five-year, $72.5 million contract with the New York Jets. Malcolm Butler got $61.25 million over that same timeframe from the Tennessee Titans, even after his mysterious benching in Super Bowl LII.

Darby doesn't have Johnson or Butler's resume, but he's every bit as talented. The 24-year-old was a significant contributor during the Eagles' run to the Super Bowl.

There's a reason why Darby has been mentioned in trade rumors for some time now. The Eagles realize that if he can stay healthy, teams will line up with fat offers next spring, willing to bet Darby's star is on the rise.

It's a matter of supply and demand. And at cornerback, the demand regularly exceeds the supply.