Could This AFC Quarterback Shatter NFL Salary Records and Rewrite History?

Here’s a thought — when did NFL contracts start looking more like Wall Street bonus packages than paychecks for throwing a pigskin? Somehow, every new quarterback extension seems to one-up the last, pushing salaries into stratospheres that make you wonder if the league’s front offices are playing 3D chess with the salary cap — or just printing money. Take Lamar Jackson: the Ravens face $74.5 million in cap hits over the next two years for a guy who’s been the heartbeat of their offense. Yet, there’s a whisper swirling that an extension could vault him past Dak Prescott’s eye-popping $60 million-per-season deal and crown Jackson the highest-paid QB in NFL history. It’s a financial arms race on the gridiron, and honestly, it begs the question — at what point does paying quarterbacks like kings start tweaking the balance of the game itself? Let’s dive in and see how these astronomical contracts are reshaping the NFL landscape — and what it means for the teams, the fans, and maybe even the future of football.

NFL contracts have gotten larger throughout the years, which is mainly due to the league’s salary cap continuing to skyrocket.

Quarterbacks continue to be the highest-paid players in the league, and it seems that every extension has been larger than the last, at least for the league’s elites.

Players like Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, and Josh Allen have raised the bar, causing Dak Prescott to ask for more in his last extension, and he’s now the highest-paid QB in the league, making $60 million per season.

While quarterbacks arguably play the most important position on the team, these massive contracts make it difficult for teams to build around them, at least in the way teams might want.

Front offices can maneuver the cap; however, they find ways to manipulate it and squeeze out every possible dollar.

The Baltimore Ravens might find themselves in this situation soon, as Ari Meirov recently highlighted on X.

Lamar Jackson has cap hits of $74.5 million over the next two seasons, but Meirov indicated that the Ravens could bring that number down if they sign him to an extension.

#Ravens QB Lamar Jackson has cap hits of $74.5M in both 2026 and 2027. An easy way to lower that is with an extension — and if that happens, Lamar should become the highest-paid player in NFL history, surpassing Dak Prescott’s $60M per year.

Full contract extensions episode:… https://t.co/XGQFZSTnoB pic.twitter.com/mPviRYqqSy

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 5, 2025

He mentioned that, if and when this happens, Jackson will likely surpass Prescott as the highest-paid QB in the league.

It’s unclear at this time how much he’ll make when the time comes, but this is another example of a quarterback leapfrogging another to become the highest-paid.

Jackson has been instrumental in making the Ravens one of the best teams in the AFC, but after paying him all of this money, fans are hoping he can deliver more than an exciting regular season.

The post Analyst Believes AFC QB Could Become Highest Paid In NFL History appeared first on The Cold Wire.