- Joined
- Apr 27, 2007
- Messages
- 10,450
- Reaction score
- 13,443
sometimes yes, sometimes no.
As far as the topic at hand, I'll play.
When the NFL makes the game more and more about one position, of course it will take up more and more of the money
Exploding NFL QB Salaries
- Thread starter phinsforlife
- Start date
As far as the topic at hand, I'll play.
When the NFL makes the game more and more about one position, of course it will take up more and more of the money
Do you foresee negative side affects, or non QB players attempting to correct the perceived imbalance?
Hopefully something is figured out with this. Kind of like when they adjusted the rookie salaries in the early 2000s. Rookies were making millions, more than vets, then they changed it.
WestLondonDolphin
Active Roster
Having a great QB on a rookie contract should definitely give teams an advantage when it comes to winning the Super Bowl
And yet it’s only happened twice since 2011 (Wilson and Mahomes, maybe Wentz would have won with the Eagles but we’ll never know).
So it’s not necessarily an easy window to climb through.
Blake the great
Active Roster
- Joined
- Jan 26, 2011
- Messages
- 5,079
- Reaction score
- 5,871
Same place where you get them originally......the draft.
in fact the last 3 sbs, the opposing team had the QB on the rookie deal . 2 of 3 were lost (but very close) in part because Mahomes (the one guy that seems to be able to carry the team) was on the other side. interestingly, the third SB was lost to the Rams, but they were all in and the way they had it structured, Stafford was only 7pct of the cap
Rick Cartman
It is what it is
Mahomes is the best QB of his generation and possibly ever when it's all said and done, but their formula the last few seasons is a great defense that typically holds teams under 20 points and Patrick Mahomes.
You're going to win a lot of games if you have Patrick Mahomes and know you only need ~20 on a given Sunday to win.
WestLondonDolphin
Active Roster
Absolutely. A great QB on a rookie deal is a huge advantage.
But it hasn’t translated into Super Bowl wins in the current CBA era.
The % of cap is an interesting one to look at.
But really the way to give yourself the best chance of winning over the past decade is having Brady or Mahomes on your team.
I don't think you can just focus on QB salaries as a percentage of salary cap. In looking through some of the contending teams, there are plenty of QB's who have gotten paid but have low cap impacts now but balloon next year or the year after. It is about putting as many weapons on the field at the same time and playing the deferred salary game to make that happen. Currently (over the cap was the source) here is where some of the contending teams stand with their top 3 salaries compared to the cap.....
Chiefs 34%
Ravens 28.2%
Bengals 27.4%
49's 30.1%
Chargers 27.8%
Eagles 15.2%
Jaguars 23.5%
Dolphins 27.0%
Bills 22.3%
The Eagles are an interesting case.....even though Hurts has a big contract, his cap him this year is going to be $13M. Now there are years ahead where he is at $41M and $47M but there are ways to structure these deals to spread them out over time and allow for more playmaker salaries at other positions.
Bottom line, we are about middle of the pack currently in terms of our top 3 salaries. If Tua gets a contract done, his cap hit this year and potentially next year would likely go down and then start going up as we start to move on from T. Hill. I don't see us in any better or worse situation than the majority of good teams.
Chiefs 34%
Ravens 28.2%
Bengals 27.4%
49's 30.1%
Chargers 27.8%
Eagles 15.2%
Jaguars 23.5%
Dolphins 27.0%
Bills 22.3%
The Eagles are an interesting case.....even though Hurts has a big contract, his cap him this year is going to be $13M. Now there are years ahead where he is at $41M and $47M but there are ways to structure these deals to spread them out over time and allow for more playmaker salaries at other positions.
Bottom line, we are about middle of the pack currently in terms of our top 3 salaries. If Tua gets a contract done, his cap hit this year and potentially next year would likely go down and then start going up as we start to move on from T. Hill. I don't see us in any better or worse situation than the majority of good teams.
I totally agree. Far too many obstacles.
- Joined
- Apr 27, 2007
- Messages
- 10,450
- Reaction score
- 13,443
We have seen negative affects already, just ask the Broncos right about now. The system is what it is, you have to adapt. If you have a viable starting QB, you have to pay a starting QB wage even if he's not Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes. It's the cost of doing business.
- Joined
- Mar 14, 2016
- Messages
- 13,524
- Reaction score
- 16,553
Interesting article. Key chart shows QB salaries not only increasing, but taking up a higher % of the salary cap over time. Highest contract was 19% of the cap in 2018, 25% of the cap in 2023. "From 2018 to 2023, the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback saw their APY increase a total of 64 percent, while the NFL’s salary cap increased just 26.5 percent. And it’s not just the top of the market that has benefited. The tenth-highest QB salary in 2018, Joe Flacco’s $22 million, covered 12.4 percent of the cap. In 2023, Josh Allen’s $43 million ranked 10th, but still covered 19.1 percent (which is more than Rodgers, the highest-paid QB, took up in 2018)."
For whatever reason, QBs have an increasing amount of leverage and are commanding more in the way of salary (as measured by % of the cap). The salary curve has also become somewhat flat - QB10 makes close to QB1, because of the leverage QBs now have, which in my view is ridiculous. Is this an issue, and should it be addressed by the NFL? No issue? Or an issue, but it is what it is and free markets should be left to solve for themselves? Link to article below the chart.
The bad news is concluding point in the article: Only one team has won a Super Bowl with a quarterback taking over 14 percent of its cap (Patrick Mahomes in 2023, at 17.2 percent). Teams know this, yet they still keep giving the QBs higher percentages of the cap. It shows you, the NFL is a business, and these are business decisions as much as they are football decisions.
View attachment 171104
Scoop City: Exploding NFL quarterback salaries, explained
Comparing the rise of quarterback salaries to the salary cap before Trevor Lawrence's inevitable extension.www.nytimes.com
So many variables. One that people often overlook is how many people go to, for example, a KC game to watch Mahomes? How many will now go to a Texans game to watch Stroud? How fast have DT/WR salaries jumped?
I've said a couple of times, at at given time, there are only 27-28 NFL level players at any position (which is why I'm against expansion). Of the reminder, there are 5-7 'top' players at any position and only a handful more who are 'average.' The remainder are below average. Thus, average players get surprisingly generous contracts - because they are not average in the NFL. QB is no different. This explains why most teams with an average or above QB don't draft one in R1. The more rare anything is, the more valuable it is.
When will sanity return? For the top 3-5 QBs, not until NFL revenue starts to decline. For the overpaid average guys, I HOPE teams see an average guy eat $45mm/yr, see the team wallow at the 5-7 win level, and rethink the value of average.
What it's going to come down to is the teams that draft well year after year are the only ones that can maintain a consistently competitive team.
The ones that have to go heavy FA will be rebuilding every few years.
cltchperf
Pro Bowler
- Joined
- May 12, 2005
- Messages
- 10,175
- Reaction score
- 5,785
I wonder what happens when other star players get frustrated and hold out because they feel their pay is way under than it should be, because the portion has gotten lopsided for the qb. I'm sure the players are happy for their qb, and many feel or vouch for players getting paid. But I wonder if there's jealousy or hidden resentment toward qbs especially one's that are good but not star qbs.