From Millions to Minimums—The Harsh Reality of NFL Low Earners
The NFL’s Wealth Gap
The National Football League is one of the most lucrative businesses in the world. The NFL leads the way in the United States in basically every key metric, flaunting some of the highest contracts in sports for its best players.
NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes set a record in 2020 when he signed a half-billion-dollar contract extension with the Chiefs, becoming the highest-paid NFL player at the time. Since then, players like Dak Prescott, Jared Goff, Jordan Love, Joe Burrow, and more have all set new records with ludicrous salaries of $65 or more.
While the best players make several millions per year, this is not the norm for most of the NFL. In fact, a large chunk of players make the smallest NFL contract, which has risen year-by-year, but is still pocket change compared to the top end of talent in the league.
Lowest NFL Player Salary
The lowest amount an NFL player can make varies by roster spot and experience. For rookies or other first-year players who are on the active NFL roster, the minimum salary is $795,000. This number is new in 2024 and has continued to rise over the years, with last year’s minimum sitting at $750,000.
There are a number of players around the league who are paid this minimum amount, with most being linemen and special teams players. Tyreik McAllister was the lowest-paid wide receiver in the league as of 2024 with a base pay of the minimum $795,000. Technically, there is no minimum salary by position overall, but long snappers typically have the lowest average NFL salary by position.
However, there are ways that players can make less than even the minimum NFL salary, and the floor is pretty much $12,500.
Lowest Paid NFL Players
The lowest a player can make on the 53-man active roster all season in the NFL is $795,000, but there are players paid much less than that. How? The practice squad. Practice squad players are essentially the AAA minor league affiliates in the NFL. They are players that practice with the team but are not on the gameday 53-man roster and can only fill in for injuries and such and must be elevated before game time to the active gameday roster.
The practice squad is a small group of 17 players and they are the lowest-paid NFL players by far. The minimum practice squad salary is $12,500 per week. This means if you played on the practice squad every week of the season and never made a gameday roster, you would earn $225,000 before taxes.
However, it goes even lower from there. NFL players and practice squad players are paid weekly, and you only get paid if you practice that week. That means practice squad players are still constantly fighting to make sure they stay on the practice squad each week. So, technically, the lowest a player could possibly make in the NFL is $12,500 in one year if you practiced for one week and never saw an NFL gameday roster.
This does not apply to most practice squad guys, but there have been some very low payments for players in a season before. For example, quarterback Tyrone Swoops was an off-and-on member of the practice squad for the Seahawks in 2017 and made only $27,353 that year with the team.
Rising Minimums
The minimums for player payments are constantly rising. By 2030, the minimum weekly payment for practice squad members will be $16,750. While this is more than most Americans make in a month, it’s still pennies compared to the lucrative deals at the top of the NFL. These practice squad guys still play a pivotal part in the team’s success and are constantly motivated by a chance to make a gameday roster. Even the lowest-paid NFL football players play a crucial role in the team’s success, even if they aren’t making a half-billion dollars like Patrick Mahomes.
The average NFL salary in 2024 was $3.2 million, and while a lot of players still won’t make that much in a season, many still find it worth it to play in the biggest football league in the world. And, let’s face it, most people wouldn’t mind playing a sport alongside the greatest athletes in the world for $12,500 a week. To stay updated on the latest NFL news, player performances, and visit BetUS for NFL game odds.