Micah Parsons Now Makes More Money Than Patrick Mahomes After Ditching Cowboys for Packers

Patrick Mahomes signed a 10 year contract with the Chiefs in 2020 and since then has gone on to win two Super Bowls.

Micah Parsons Now Makes More Money Than Patrick Mahomes After Ditching Cowboys for Packers

Patrick Mahomes and Micah Parsons (Image via IMAGO)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

Patrick Mahomes’ face automatically pops up while discussing the top quarterback salaries in the NFL. Why wouldn’t it? He is a 2x NFL MVP, 3x Super Bowl MVP, and champion with several records to his name. So, naturally, one would expect Mahomes to be the highest-paid quarterback ever.

A year after winning his first ring in 2019, the Kansas City Chiefs signed Mahomes to a mammoth 10-year, $450 million contract extension. At that time, it was the largest player contract in any sport (later broken by Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto).

Mahomes’ $45 million AAV is convincing enough to peg him as the highest-paid quarterback in football. That reality is very different now.

Mahomes is not sitting at the top of the salary chain. Currently, that title belongs to Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who signed a $61.5 million AAV extension in 2024. So, Mahomes should be the second-highest?

According to Over The Cap, Mahomes is not even in the top 10 in terms of yearly salary numbers. He’s tied as the 15th highest-earning quarterback with the Atlanta Falcons’ Kirk Cousins.

Since penning his deal in 2020, Jalen Hurts, Jared Goff, Justin Herbert, Brock Purdy, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, Kyler Murray, Trevor Lawrence, and Josh Allen have overtaken Mahomes by signing contract extensions with their respective teams. Even the Cleveland Browns’ Deshaun Watson earns more than Mahomes.

Moreover, Mahomes agreed to restructure his contract not once but twice—first in 2023, and the second adjustment took place in March 2025. This helped to free up cap space for the Chiefs to pay other players.

The Chiefs likely converted all or part of the base salary or roster bonus due Mahomes and [Chris] Jones this season and instead gave it to them as a signing bonus. Those moves would lower their respective cap numbers, which at the beginning of the day were, respectively, $66.258 million and $34.85 million.

Sports Illustrated reported

Patrick Mahomes falls down the salary ladder

On Thursday, Mahomes fell even further in the salary department. So, another quarterback received the bag? The answer is a big no.

Micah Parsons Now Makes More Money Than Patrick Mahomes After Ditching Cowboys for Packers
Patrick Mahomes (Image via IMAGO)

It was, in fact, Micah Parsons who received a hefty upgrade following a $188 million extension. However, Parsons did not sign the deal with the Cowboys. The All-Pro edge rusher was traded to the Green Bay Packers, and the NFC North club agreed to pay Parsons $47 million AAV to bring his services to Wisconsin.

Parsons became the highest-paid non-quarterback with the extension. He leaped ahead of former DPOY TJ Watt, who signed a $41 million AAV with the Pittsburgh Steelers during the offseason.

Patrick Mahomes’ MVP odds

2024-25 wasn’t the best season for Mahomes. Despite leading the Chiefs to their third straight Super Bowl appearance, Mahomes’ accuracy dwindled in the early part of the season. He witnessed improvement near the end, but by that point, he had conceded 11 interceptions.

This was a far cry from his second MVP campaign two years earlier, when he threw 5000+ yards, 41 touchdowns, and had a 105.2 passer rating.

Naturally, Mahomes did not come close to winning his third MVP in 2024. That honor went to the Bills’ Josh Allen, who pipped the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson.

New odds from Vegas show that Mahomes is once more among the favorites for the MVP accolade. FanDuel (via TSN) revealed that the Chiefs’ star shot caller currently has the fourth-best (+650) odds to become MVP. Jackson is leading with +430 odds, followed by Allen, and Bengals’ Joe Burrow is tied at third with +600.

Also Read: