Did the Ravens Sign the Worst QB Contract in the NFL?

Did the Ravens Sign the Worst QB Contract in the NFL?
Fact Checked by Blake Weishaar

Quarterback is easily the most important position in the NFL, and particularly for the Ravens playoff chances. Some teams are fortunate enough to have an elite quarterback on a reasonably expensive long-term contract (Chiefs with Patrick Mahomes and Bills with Josh Allen). Some teams have been living the dream with an elite quarterback on a rookie contract (Bengals with Joe burrow and Chargers with Justin Herbert). Then, there are some teams who are desperate enough to overpay a quarterback even if his performance doesn’t dictate the huge contract. 

Below is the list of the top-5 worst current QB contracts in the NFL.

RankPlayer (Team)Contract
1Daniel Jones, NYG4yr, $160m
2Derek Carr, NO4yr, $150m
3Lamar Jackson, BAL5yr, $260m
4Russell Wilson, DEN5yr, $245m
5Matthew Stafford, LAR4yr, $160m

To calculate the most overpaid quarterbacks currently in the NFL, I used overthecap.com to find the player’s career earnings through the 2022 season and their current contract average per year (APY). I also used Pro-Football-Reference.com to find the player’s total career touchdowns and their touchdown average in career starts. For each of the 14 QBs currently making $30M+ APY, I calculated their average earnings per career touchdown and estimated earnings per touchdown for the upcoming season. Below is the list of the top-5 worst current QB contracts in the NFL entering the 2023 season. 

1. DANIEL JONESStatsNFL Rank
Career Earnings / TD$862.9K2nd Most
Current APY$40.0M9th Most
Career TD Avg / Starts1.4Fewest
Estimated Earnings / TD (2023)$1.7MMost
2. DEREK CARRStatsNFL Rank
Career Earnings / TD$735.5K7th Most
Current APY$37.5M12th Most
Career TD Avg / Starts1.62nd Fewest
Estimated Earnings / TD (2023)$1.4M6th Most
3. LAMAR JACKSONStatsNFL Rank
Career Earnings / TD$839.9K3rd Most
Current APY$52.0MMost
Career TD Avg / Starts2.06th Most
Estimated Earnings / TD (2023)$1.5M7th Most
4. RUSSELL WILSONStatsNFL Rank
Career Earnings / TD$711.5K8th Most
Current APY$49.0M4th Most
Career TD Avg / Starts1.96th Fewest
Estimated Earnings / TD (2023)$1.5M7th Most
5. MATTHEW STAFFORDStatsNFL Rank
Career Earnings / TD$863.5KMost
Current APY$40.0M9th Most
Career TD Avg / Starts1.84th Fewest
Estimated Earnings / TD (2023)$1.3M10th Most

Ravens Might Regret Jackson's Contract

In order to keep star quarterback and former NFL MVP on their team long-term, the Baltimore Ravens gave Lamar Jackson the largest contract in NFL history in terms of APY. Jackson is certainly one of the most talented players in the NFL and deserved a large extension. However, as of late, his production is not up-to-par with the other top quarterbacks around the league, and a 5-year, $260 million extension could come back to bite the Ravens in the long haul.

  • Jackson’s record-breaking APY of $52.0 million is $9 million more per year than Buffalo Bills’ QB Josh Allen and $7 million more per year than 2-time MVP and 2-time Super Bowl winner Patrick Mahomes. 
  • Over his first five career seasons (2018-2022), Jackson made $840,000 per career touchdown, which is already the third most among the current 14 highest paid quarterbacks. With his massive extension and new APY of $52.0 million, that rate is expected to nearly double in 2023.
  • Jackson has missed five games each of the last two seasons after not missing a game from 2018 to 2020. 
  • Using Jackson’s average of 2.0 touchdowns per career start, he is estimated to earn $1.5 million per touchdown scored in the 2023 season. That is over $400,000 more per touchdown than Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen are expected to receive this upcoming season. 

Therefore, Lamar Jackson lands #3 on this list of the worst current QB contracts. 

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Author

Michelle Magdziuk

Michelle is an editorial researcher and fantasy writer for the NFL Network. She also is a co-host for the BallBlast Fantasy Football Podcast and the Gold Diggers Podcast on the 49ers Gold Standard Network.

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