The NFL's quarterback market continues to reset every year but no one's extension (or potential deal) has been more polarizing than Brock Purdy's looming contract from the San Francisco 49ers. After being a bargain for years thanks to being the last pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Purdy has cashed in on a whopping five-year, $265 million deal, which seems like a major overpay compared to his actual production.
Purdy is far from the worst value in the NFL, even after landing a megabucks deal with San Francisco. In honor of the now-very rich Mr. Irrelevant from 2022, let's take a look at the most overpaid player at each position in the NFL, with contract figures coming courtesy of Spotrac.
The NFL's Most Overpaid Players At Each Position
Quarterback - Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
While Tua Tagovailoa's deal with Miami may not age particularly well, no one defines overpaid in the NFL more than Deshaun Watson. The Cleveland Browns were so desperate to find an answer at quarterback that they handed Watson a fully guaranteed deal worth $230 million that they have been regretting since the moment Watson took the field.
After inheriting Watson's masseuse scandal, the Browns were hoping that his play would outweigh any off-field distractions. That hasn't happened as Watson has been a massive flop, tearing his Achilles' tendon twice in one season, dealing with a shoulder injury in another, and looking extremely mediocre every time he took a snap for Cleveland.
The fully guaranteed nature of the deal has become an anvil to the Browns' salary cap, making it very hard for them to build a winning team despite possessing some elite talent like defensive end Myles Garrett. The Browns have had to restructure Watson's contract multiple times over the past few years in order to become cap compliant, meaning the pain of this overpaid contract will still haunt the franchise for years after they finally move on.
Running Back - D'Andre Swift, Chicago Bears
2024 was the year that free agent running backs got paid as Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs and Derrick Henry proved to be tremendous values for their new teams. One guy who didn't fit that mold is D'Andre Swift, who got a three-year, $24 million deal from the Bears to be their top ball carrier.
Swift played in all 17 games for the first time in his career but regressed from his strong 2023 campaign, averaging just 3.8 yards per carry and failing to rush for 1,000 yards on the year. Chicago made decent use of Swift's receiving skills but he fell into a committee, losing carries to Roschon Johnson as the year goes on.
The addition of new head coach Ben Johnson, who was Swift's offensive coordinator with Detroit in 2022, offers some hope that Chicago can get more out of their investment. Swift got over $15 million guaranteed on his contract but could be a cap casualty after the season if he doesn't deliver more production.
Wide Receiver - Calvin Ridley, Tennessee Titans
Few positions outside of quarterback have seen their market explode as the one for top receivers. The big deals for Justin Jefferson, Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins over the past two years have set a new standard for game-breaking pass catchers that will be tough to surpass.
One guy who got paid and didn't live up to the hype was Calvin Ridley, who left Jacksonville for Tennessee by getting a four-year, $92 million deal with $50 million guaranteed. The hope was that Ridley could pair with DeAndre Hopkins to provide a strong support system for young quarterback Will Levis, but Hopkins was traded in the middle of the season and Ridley's 2024 line (64 catches for 1,017 yards and four touchdowns) was nowhere near the value at which he is getting paid.
With the Titans expected to take Cam Ward with the top pick in Thursday's draft, Ridley will have a chance to rebuild some of his value with the top rookie passer in the class. The fact that Ridley is now on the wrong side of 30 means this contract has a chance to age very badly in the next few years.
Tight End - Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints
The Saints are in perennial cap hell and part of the reason why comes from the fact that they spent big money to overpay their own players. A perfect example of this is Taysom Hill, a gadget player Sean Payton unearthed and used in a variety of packages to take advantage of his unique skill set and frame.
Even though Payton left New Orleans after the 2021 season, he did leave the franchise a parting gift in the form of a contract extension for Hill that was worth $40 million with $21 million of it guaranteed. Giving a gadget player that kind of money is outrageous and Hill's role hasn't scaled up enough to justify the cost of that contract.
Hill's deal finally wraps at the end of the 2025 season but will leave the Saints with two years of dead salary cap hits in exchange. While Saints fans enjoyed Hill's unique qualities early in his career, the act hasn't aged well as New Orleans continues to delay a much-needed cleansing of their books.
Offensive Tackle - Dan Moore, Tennessee Titans
Free agency is a funny business where teams have money to burn and a lot of the top talent doesn't hit the market since smart teams either extend their guys or use the franchise tag. Anyone with a pulse at a premium position like left tackle is a candidate to be overpaid, which is exactly what happened this spring when the Titans handed Dan Moore a four-year deal worth $82 million.
Moore got $50 million guaranteed from Tennessee, which desperately needed help at left tackle with plans to take Ward with the No. 1 overall pick. The deal gave Moore the tenth-most guaranteed money of any offensive tackle, which is a massive overpay based on how he was extremely average during his tenure with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The other options on the free agent market at tackle weren't great, especially after Ronnie Stanley stayed in Baltimore, but there's a good chance the Titans regretted this deal the moment they signed it. Moore led the league by allowing 12 sacks in 2024, which came with much better support from his teammates, which is not a good omen for his chances of getting this contract off a future edition of this list.
Offensive Guard - Damien Lewis, Carolina Panthers
The Panthers made a decisive commitment to fixing the interior of their offensive line last spring, splurging with $153 million worth of contracts to Robert Hunt and Damien Lewis. While Hunt rewarded Carolina's investment with a Pro Bowl appearance in 2024, Lewis delivered more average returns for the Panthers' interior.
That return is certainly not what Carolina was hoping for when they gave Lewis $53 million over four years, including a $15 million guaranteed signing bonus. While the deal isn't the worst overpay we've ever seen, it is a significant allocation of resources to a non-premium position that hasn't delivered the most bang for the Panthers' buck.
Center - James Daniels, Miami Dolphins
There wasn't really a terrible center value on the books in the league since the NFL seems to have appropriately valued its centers. Daniels' deal with Miami qualifies as a slight overpay at $24 million over three years, which includes over $10 million guaranteed.
Edge Rusher - Milton Williams, New England Patriots
The free agent class of 2025 has another member here as Milton Williams, an ascending young talent who played a solid role on the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, cashed in on his age and potential in a big way. With over $100 million in salary cap space and a relatively weak crop of players to spend it on, the New England Patriots made a big bet on Williams' continued growth by handing him a four-year, $104 million deal with $63 million guaranteed.
The contract made Williams the highest-paid Patriot ever in terms of annual salary, which is incredible to think about for a franchise that had a dynasty for 20 years led by the greatest quarterback of all time. Williams is still 26 years old and set a career high with five sacks for the Eagles in 2024, but he started only seven games and registered 24 tackles in his walk year.
The plan in New England is for Williams to play more snaps than he did in Philadelphia and become more of an edge rushing menace than he was in Philadelphia. The problem is that Williams will need to become a regular double-digit sack guy in order to justify his contract, which is far from guaranteed.
Defensive Line - Bryce Huff, Philadelphia Eagles
While the Eagles have become notoriously good at identifying value in free agency, even Howie Roseman isn't immune to a whiff every now and then. After realizing that the Haason Reddick situation was untenable, Roseman made a big swing for a younger replacement by signing Bryce Huff away from the New York Jets for three years and $51 million, with $34 million guaranteed.
After succeeding in a pass-rushing role in New York, the expectation was that Huff would blossom with regular playing time. That didn't happen as Huff failed to adapt to Philadelphia's defensive scheme and battled injuries, playing in 12 games and recording only 2.5 sacks after posting 10 in his final year as a Jet.
Huff was a non-factor during the Eagles' postseason run and was a healthy scratch for the Super Bowl. With the loss of Williams and other key defenders due to salary cap concerns, Philadelphia will need to get more out of Huff in his second year in Vic Fangio's system.
Linebacker - Tremaine Edmunds, Chicago Bears
One of the hardest decisions a team has to make in the modern NFL is how to value an off-ball linebacker. While the position was more of an emphasis in the 1970s and 1980s, when running games were dominant, the passing age has made off-ball linebackers more of a luxury item than a necessity to build a strong defense.
The Bears made a splurge when they signed Tremaine Edmunds away from the Buffalo Bills prior to the 2023 season. Edmunds got four years and $72 million from Chicago, with $50 million of it guaranteed, as a move to replace Roquan Smith, who the team didn't want to pay and dealt to Baltimore prior to his free agency.
While Edmunds has put up solid tackling numbers during his teim in Chicago, he hasn't delivered as much impact as Smith has in Baltimore, where he has become a leader on the Ravens' defense. The Bears probably would have been better off just paying Smith what he was worth and letting Edmunds land elsewhere since the bang for their buck would've been far better in that scenario.
CB - Tyson Campbell, Jacksonville Jaguars
The pre-eminence of the passing attack in the modern NFL has made teams put a premium on finding corners who can handle receivers in man-to-man coverage. Jacksonville was worried about losing ground in the AFC South when they handed Campbell, their 2020 second round pick out of Georgia, a four-year extension worth $76.5 million with $53 million of it guaranteed.
That deal has Campbell inside the position's Top 10 in terms of guaranteed money, which would make you think that he is a shutdown guy tasked with blanketing the other team's top receiver. That hasn't played out according to plan for Campbell, who has been slowed by injuries and was rated as the 103rd best corner in football according to Pro Football Focus, which is far from worthy of the hefty salary he is earning.
The Jaguars are still getting value from having Campbell on their team since he is a player capable of making a big impact, as evidenced by his strong 2022 where he registered 15 passes defensed and picked off three more. Campbell hasn't looked close to that player since then, however, which is a concern as he gets closer to aging out of his prime years.
S - Trevon Moehrig, Carolina Panthers
The third member of the 2025 free agent class to land on this list is Moehrig, who put together solid production for Las Vegas and got paid handsomely for it in Carolina. The Panthers were a team that had money to burn this offseason and spent $51 million of it on Moherig, who secured a $34 million guarantee at a non-premium position.
Pro Football Focus rated Moehrig as the league's 59th best safety in 2024 yet he received the sixth-most guaranteed money at his position, coming in ahead of better players like Kyle Hamilton and Xavier McKinney. While Carolina is obviously hoping that Moehrig can ascend to another level as he enters his age-26 season, the money they paid for what equates to solid starter production qualifies as a reach.
Specialist - Graham Gano, New York Giants
Finding an overpaid specialist usually involves finding a veteran who earned a high salary due to his previous performance and is breaking down. The top candidate here is Graham Gano, who has been in the league since 2009 but has seen a big dip in performance over the past two years with New York.
Gano has missed 16 combined games over the past two years, including a notable game-day absence in Week 2 of the 2024 season that arguably cost the Giants a win when head coach Brian Daboll didn't have a backup kicker elevated to the game day roster. New York guaranteed $11.3 million of Gano's current $16.5 million extension, which hasn't aged well since he has only converted 71.4 percent of his field goal attempts over the past two years. At age 38, the Giants should be looking for competition for Gano in camp.
