Determining the highest-paid NFL players in a particular year isn’t a simple endeavor, as NFL contracts are more intricate than those in the NBA and MLB. Front-loading contracts is more of a nece sity because the deals aren’t fully guaranteed, and this practice leads to variance among the highest-paid football players on a year-to-year basis. For example, quarterback was 2018’s highest-paid player making $66.9 million primarily because of a $57.5 million signing bonus. His 2019 compensation is $15 million.Unlike most teams, the Packers routinely pay signing bonuses, regardle Damar Hamlin Jersey s of the amount, in the same calendar year as signing. Typically, when a player has a large signing bonus or roster bonus in his contract, he doesn’t receive a portion of the money until the next calendar year. Salary deferrals have been standard operating procedure for quite some time with the most lucrative NFL contracts. The seven-year, $98 million contract signed with the in March 2004 included a then-NFL record $34.5 million signing bonus. $18.5 million of the $34.5 million wasn’t paid to Manning until March 2005. The chart below contains notable salary deferrals of contracts signed in 2019. NameTeamTotal Signing BonusDeferred AmountPayment Date$65,000,000$35,000,000 4/1/2020$25,000,000$20,000,000 3/31/2020$10,000,000$10,000,000 4/15/2020Falcons$18,000,000$8,500,000 3/31/2020Seahawks$15,000,000$8,000,000 4/1/2020Rams$17,500,000$7,500,000 3/31/2020$25,000,000$7,000,000 3/31/2020$23,589,924$6,839,924 3/1/2020Falcons$25,000,000$6,000,000 3/31/2020$20,500,000$5,250,000 3/31/2020Large signing bonuses are usually broken into two to four installments Greg Mancz Jersey rather than paid in a lump sum regardle s of whether all of the money is received in the same calendar year the deal was made. Wilson’s signing bonus is indicative of the typical payment schedule. $10 million was payable a couple of weeks after he signed. He received $10 million on June 15 and July 15. The final $35 million is paid next April. Below are the 15 highest-paid NFL players for 2019. The only money taken into consideration is from NFL player contracts and is before taxes (i.e., gro s income). 1. QB : $40 millionRoethlisberger claims the top spot largely because he is getting $32.5 million of his $37.5 million signing bonus from the two-year, $68 million contract extension he signed shortly before late April’s NFL draft during this calendar year. The 37-year-old’s season was cut short after two games because on a right elbow injury requiring surgery. 2. Seahawks QB Ru sell Wilson: $35 millionWilson reset the NFL pay scale in April when he signed a four-year, $140 million extension (worth up to $146 million through salary escalators), averaging $35 million per year. The deal had a league-record $107 million of overall guarantees, which has subsequently been eclipsed by Rams quarterback Jared Goff and quarterback . Wilson’s $65 million signing bonus is the largest ever for an NFL player. He isn’t 2019’s highest-paid player because more than half of his signing bonus is deferred to next April (see chart above). The deferral ensures that Wilson will also be one of 2020’s highest-paid players.3. Falcons QB Matt Ryan: $34.75 millionThe NFL’s first $30 million per year player has a high place on the list largely thanks to his $46.5 million signing bonus in the five-year, $150 million extension he signed in 2018 having $23.25 million payable this past April. Ryan was also the first NFL player to sign a deal with $100 million in overall guarantees. His $94.5 million fully guaranteed at signing is still an NFL best, although he is now the league’s sixth-highest-paid player by average yearly salary. 4. Rams DT : $34 Matt Breida Jersey .108 millionDonald is the founding member of the $20 million per year non-quarterback club. The two-time reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year signed a six-year, $135 million extension averaging $22.5 million per year at the end of preseason last year. The deal’s $86.892 million of overall guarantees established a new standard for non-quarterbacks. $40 million of the guarantees came via signing bonus, and as a result Donald tied then quarterback for the fourth-biggest signing bonus ever when his contract was done. $25 million of the signing bonus wasn’t payable until the end of this past March. 5. DE : $31.1 millionLawrence, who was designated as a franchise player for a second year in a row, signed a five-year, $105 million contract in April to become the NFL’s third $20 million per year non-quarterback. He has $65 million in guarantees, with $48 million fully guaranteed at signing. A $25 million signing bonus is a part of Lawrence’s guaranteed money. None of the signing bonus is deferred into 2020.6. DE : $28.875 millionFlowers had Christian Benford Jersey ideal free agency circumstances this year. The best potentially available edge rushers ( , , and Lawrence) were given franchise tags. Two teams familiar with Flowers because of Patriots connections, the and Lions, competed to sign him. The competition led to Flowers getting a five-year, $90 million contract with $56 million in guarantees. Out of the $40 million fully guaranteed, $28.07 million was in a signing bonus. Flowers received all of his signing bonus by the middle of September. 7. QB : $28.6 millionThe 49ers took a calculated risk with the five-year, $137.5 million contract given to Garoppolo in February 2018. All it took was five impre sive starts at the end of 2017 following a midseason trade from the Patriots for Garoppolo to briefly become the NFL’s highest-paid player at $27.5 million per year. The 49ers did something unique with Garoppolo’s contract because of an abundance of salary cap room, as the deal was structured with an unusually large $37 million 2018 cap number (the first year). The bulk of this cap number came from a $28 million third day of the 2018 league year roster bonus in which $10 million was deferred to this past February.8. QB Marcus Easley Jersey : $28 millionAfter playing the franchise tag game to perfection with the in 2016 and 2017, Cousins broke new ground with the NFL’s first lucrative fully-guaranteed veteran contract during free agency for $84 million over three years. Cousins’ deal is worth up to $90 million with incentives. The contract also contains language preventing Minnesota from designating Cousins as a transition player in 2021. He has the league’s largest 2019 base salary ($27.5 million) by a considerable margin.Cousins opted for a shorter contract than most quarterbacks sign, as most lucrative quarterback contracts are at least four years in length. Cousins is in excellent position to take advantage of changing market conditions sooner than with the typical quarterback deal. If the Vikings want to keep Cousins long term, he will be given an extension before the 2020 season starts. A franchise tag in 2021, Cousins’ third such tag, would be $44.64 million. Without an extension, Cousins is set to hit the open market in 2021 when a new collective bargaining agreement should b