How Do NFL Players Get Paid? A Simple Guide on NFL Salaries

Have you ever wondered how NFL players make their money? These amazing athletes are some of the highest-paid sports stars in the world!

But here’s the thing — how do NFL players get paid is not as simple as getting a paycheck every month like your parents might.

It’s actually much more interesting and complicated than that!

To understand all the details about NFL salaries, bonuses, and contracts, the experts at TheTopPlayers.com have studied how the payment system works.

Their research helped create this easy guide that breaks down everything you need to know.

How Do NFL Players Get Paid?

Let’s dive into the world of NFL paychecks and learn how these football heroes earn their money!

The Basic Pay: Base Salary

Every NFL player has something called a base salary. Think of this as the main money they earn just for being on the team and playing games. It’s like their main paycheck!

Here’s how it works: The base salary gets divided into 18 weekly checks during the regular NFL season. That means players get paid every week, but only when games are happening.

Quick facts about base salary:

• Paid every week during the football season
• Some salaries are guaranteed, some are not
• If guaranteed, the player gets paid even if they get injured

So if a player has a base salary of $1 million, they don’t get it all at once. They get about $55,000 every week for 18 weeks!

What Are “Guarantees” in NFL?

Now, here’s something really important. Sometimes a player’s contract has guarantees. This means they still get their money even if they can’t play. Pretty cool, right?

The NFL salary structure includes three main types of guarantees:

• Injury Guarantee: The player gets paid if they get hurt and can’t play
• Skill Guarantee: The player gets paid even if they’re not playing their best
• Cap Guarantee: The player gets paid if the team releases them because of money problems

When someone says a contract is “fully guaranteed,” it means all three types are included. That’s the best deal a player can get!

Bonus Money (Extra Cash)

Besides their regular salary, NFL players can earn extra money called bonuses. These are like special rewards on top of their base pay!

Main types of NFL player bonuses:

• Signing Bonus: Money paid right when the player signs a new contract (sometimes millions of dollars!)
• Roster Bonus: Extra cash for staying on the team for a certain amount of time
• Workout Bonus: Paid for showing up to team training camps during the offseason
• Performance Bonus: Earned by playing really well — like scoring touchdowns, making big tackles, or winning games

These bonuses can make a huge difference in how much an NFL player earns each year. Sometimes the bonus money is even bigger than the base salary!

What Is the Salary Cap?

Here’s where things get interesting. The NFL has a special rule that limits how much money each team can spend on all its players combined. This is called the salary cap.

In 2024, each team could spend about $255.4 million on player salaries. That might sound like a lot, but remember — there are 53 players on each team!

Why the salary cap matters:

• Keeps all teams fair and balanced
• Stops super-rich teams from buying every star player
• Makes team managers plan very carefully with their money

This is an important part of how NFL contracts work because teams have to be smart about who they pay and how much.

How Often Do NFL Players Get Paid?

Unlike regular jobs where people get paid all year long, NFL players receive most of their money during the 18-week regular season. That’s just a few months of the year!

Some payments come at different times:

• Signing bonuses are paid when they sign the contract
• Roster bonuses might come at the start of the season
• Workout bonuses are paid during training in the offseason

Because players don’t get paid every month of the year, many of them hire financial planners (money experts) to help them manage their cash wisely. They need to make their money last all year, not just during football season!

The “Jock Tax” (Simple Explanation)

Here’s something many people don’t know about. NFL players have to pay taxes in many different states because they travel to play games in different cities. This is called the “jock tax.”

Here’s an example: If a player lives in Texas but plays 10 games in California, New York, and other states, they have to pay taxes in all those places! Part of their income gets taxed wherever they play.

This can be really confusing and means players sometimes pay more taxes than people with regular jobs. It’s another reason why understanding how do NFL players get paid is so complicated!

Contract Changes (Restructuring)

Sometimes teams need to change a player’s contract to manage their salary cap better. This is called restructuring, and it’s like rearranging the money.

How restructuring works:

• The team moves money from salary to bonuses
• Helps the team save money for that season
• The player still gets paid, just in a different way
• Can cause money problems for the team in future years

Think of it like this: Instead of paying you $10 this week, someone says “I’ll pay you $3 now and $7 later.” You still get $10, just spread out differently!

Interesting Facts About NFL Salaries

Let’s look at some fun facts about the NFL pay system:

• Patrick Mahomes, the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, has a contract worth over $500 million — the biggest in NFL history!
• Rookie players (brand new to the NFL) have a fixed salary range called the rookie wage scale
• There’s something called “dead money” — this counts against the salary cap when a player is cut but still needs to be paid
• The minimum salary in 2024 is $750,000 for new players (not bad for a first job!)

How an NFL Contract Looks?

Here’s a simple breakdown of what an NFL player might earn:

This player would make $6.85 million total! But remember, taxes take a big chunk of that.

Summary: Putting It All Together

So, how do NFL players get paid? They earn money through a mix of base salary, bonuses, and guarantees. Some get money weekly during the season, others when they sign new contracts, and some earn extra for great performances on the field.

The NFL salary structure is designed to keep things fair between teams while rewarding the best players. From signing bonuses to performance rewards, every player’s contract is unique and carefully planned.

Next time you watch your favorite player catch a touchdown pass or make an amazing tackle, remember — every play, every catch, and every win can earn them more than just cheers from the crowd! They’re getting paid to do what they love, and now you know exactly how it works!

Whether it’s Patrick Mahomes throwing a game-winning pass or a rookie playing their first season, understanding how these athletes get paid makes watching football even more exciting. The NFL pay system rewards hard work, talent, and dedication — and that’s pretty awesome!