Top 40 Highly Compensated NFL Players In 2019

2. MATT RYAN, ATLANTA FALCONS – $44.75 MILLION:

Ryan took the Falcon to the brink of winning the Super Bowl in early 2017. While they didn’t get there, Atlanta rewarded their leader with a ridiculous five-year, $150 million extension with $94.5 million in guaranteed money. The Falcons’ longtime QB hasn’t picked up the wins to perhaps justify a deal of such magnitude since.

However, he is one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL and has a stocked arsenal of pass catchers at his disposal. Still, the pressure is on Ryan and Falcons coach Dan Quinn to recreate some of their 2016 magic, as Ryan will earn a jaw-dropping $44.75 million as the second highest-paid player in the NFL in 2019.

1. BEN ROETHLISBERGER, PITTSBURGH STEELERS – $45 MILLION:

Roethlisberger was at the center of a hotbed of drama and controversy involving former Pittsburgh wideout Antonio Brown ever since the end of last season. It got so bad that ‘Big Ben’ even apologized for his public comments after the fact.

Ii was also a shame that he never reached a Super Bowl with Brown and also-departed running back Le’Veon Bell by his side. But the Steelers clearly still believe in the aging and oft-injured passer.

They handed him a two-year, $68 million extension with $37.5 million guaranteed after last season. He has still secured elite passing numbers. His new running mates are wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Conner, not a bad pair to start over with.

He’ll lead one of the NFL’s most storied franchises into the future, and for his efforts, he’ll be paid $45 million in 2019 as the highest-paid player in the NFL this season.