Justin Jefferson contract details: How Vikings star became NFL’s highest paid WR
The Minnesota Vikings are in prime time for the first time this season with a “Thursday Night Football” game on the the road against the Los Angeles Rams.
Minnesota (5-1) just lost its first game of the season to the Lions and enters Week 8 as one of three NFC North teams with five wins.
The Vikings are enjoying their best start to a season in years behind a top-10 scoring offense and defense. On offense, they’re thriving with Sam Darnold at quarterback. Darnold’s thrown 12 touchdowns this season, tied for fifth-most in the league, and five of those have gone to his favorite target: Justin Jefferson.
NFL power rankings Week 8: Bucs, Vikings slip in reshuffled NFC picture
32 things we learned in NFL Week 7: Big statements from top contenders
Minnesota’s star wide receiver signed a record extension ahead of this season. Here’s what to know about it.
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
Justin Jefferson contract details
Jefferson signed a four-year, $140 million extension with $110 million guaranteed in early June. Here are the specifics, per Spotrac figures:
Term: 4 years
Total value: $140 million
Average annual value (AAV): $35 million
Guaranteed money: $110 million
This deal made Jefferson the highest-paid wide receiver as well as the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. Jefferson’s signing bonus on the deal – $88.743 million – is also a record among non-quarterbacks in league history.
Here’s how his salary cap hits look for the rest of his contract:
2024: $8.51 million
2025: $15.32 million
2026: $39.14 million
2027: $43.4 million
2028: $47.39 million
2029: $6 million (void year)
Who is the highest-paid NFL player?
There are three ways to measure the biggest contracts in the NFL:
Average Annual Value (AAV): How much a player makes per year over the life of the deal.
Total value: The total amount of money the contract is worth.
Guaranteed money: The amount of guaranteed money in the contract.
By AAV, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is the highest-paid player in the NFL thanks to the extension he signed before the start of the 2024 season. He became the first player to reach $60 million per year and also has the most guaranteed money of any player in NFL history.
By total value, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes holds the top spot thanks to his 10-year, $450 million deal he signed in 2020.
Full list of highest-paid NFL players
AAV
Dak Prescott, Cowboys: $60 million
Joe Burrow, Bengals: $55 million
Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars: $55 million
Jordan Love, Packers: $55 million
Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins: $53.1 million
Jared Goff, Lions: $53 million
Justin Herbert, Chargers: $52.5 million
Lamar Jackson, Ravens: $52 million
Jalen Hurts, Eagles: $51 million
Kyler Murray, Cardinals: $46.1 million
Guaranteed money
Dak Prescott, Cowboys: $231 million
Deshaun Watson, Browns: $230 million
Joe Burrow, Bengals: $219.01 million
Justin Herbert, Chargers: $218.74 million
Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars: $200 million
Lamar Jackson, Ravens: $185 million
Jalen Hurts, Eagles: $179.4 million
Jared Goff: $170.61 million
Tua Tagovailoa: $167.17 million
Jordan Love: $160.3 million
Total contract value
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs: $450 million
Joe Burrow, Bengals: $275 million
Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars: $275 million
Justin Herbert, Chargers: $262.5 million
Lamar Jackson, Ravens: $260 million
Josh Allen, Bills: $258.04 million
Jalen Hurts, Eagles: $255 million
Dak Prescott, Cowboys: $240 million
Kyler Murray, Cardinals: $230.5 million
Deshaun Watson, Browns: $230 million
Highest-paid NFL wide receivers
Jefferson sits in at least a tie at the top spot of all three contract categories among wide receivers. Here’s how the top 10 in each looks:
AAV
Justin Jefferson, Vikings: $35 million
CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys: $34 million
A.J. Brown, Eagles: $32 million
Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions: $30 million
Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers: $30 million
Tyreek Hill, Dolphins: $30 million
Jaylen Waddle, Dolphins: $28.25 million
Davante Adams, Jets: $28 million
D.J. Moore, Bears: $27.5 million
Cooper Kupp, Rams: $26.7 million
Guaranteed money
Justin Jefferson, Vikings: $110 million
CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys: $100 million
A.J. Brown, Eagles: $84 million
D.J. Moore, Bears: $81.53 million
Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions: $77 million
Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers: $76 million
Jaylen Waddle, Dolphins: $76 million
Cooper Kupp, Rams: $75 million
Davante Adams, Jets: $65.67 million
Amari Cooper, Buffalo: $60 million
Total contract value
Justin Jefferson, Vikings:: $140 million
Davante Adams, Jets: $140 million
CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys: $136 million
Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions: $120.01 million
Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers: $120 million
D.J. Moore, Bears: $110 million
Amari Cooper, Bills: $100 million
A.J. Brown, Eagles: $96 million
Calvin Ridley, Titans: $92 million
Tyreek Hill, Dolphins: $90 million
Justin Jefferson stats
In six games of the 2024 NFL season, Jefferson has 33 catches for 531 yards and five touchdowns on 51 targets.
The 25-year-old holds the NFL career record for receiving yards per game at 97.4. In Week 2 of this season, Jefferson tied Lance Alworth as the fastest wide receivers to reach 6,000 career receiving yards, a record that’s stood for 57 years. Both did it in their 62nd career game.
