Josh Allen no longer among NFL’s highest-paid QBs after Trevor Lawrence extension

The quarterback bubble is a very funny thing.

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed pass rusher Trevor Lawrence to a five-year, $275 million contract Thursday night, tying the rising signal-caller to Duval County through the 2030 season. The contract includes $200 million in guarantees and will for the 24-year-old to earn around $55 million per season.

The deal makes Lawrence the new leader of the proverbial quarterback clubhouse, as he is now tied with Cincinnati Bengals passer Joe Burrow as the highest-paid signal-caller in the league. His sudden jump in the rankings pushes Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen out of the top 10 highest-paid NFL quarterbacks; the 28-year-old earns just $43 million a year.

Allen became the 10th highest-paid passer in the league after Jared Goff signed his four-year, $212 million mega extension with the Detroit Lions earlier this offseason. The Goff deal made the Allen deal look like a bargain; the Lawrence deal — which makes Allen the 11th highest-paid quarterback in football — makes his contract look like a bargain.

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Allen originally signed his current contract in the summer of 2021, a six-year extension worth up to $258 million with a then-NFL record $150 million in guarantees. The deal was expected to make Allen the second-highest paid quarterback in the league at $43 million per year, behind Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes at $45 million per year.

The deal was considered a bit risky for the Bills at the time; Although Allen was coming off a breakout season in which he earned second-team All-Pro honors and finished second in NFL MVP voting, his breakout campaign came after a year of pretty lousy rookie and a rocky sophomore outing. The contract was an example of how Buffalo was trying to get a head start, locking Allen into a long-term deal not only before cementing itself as one of the NFL’s elite, but before the market of quarterbacks does not turn into a bubble.

It was wise to do so.

Allen would not only cement himself as one of the best quarterbacks, but players, in the championship, leading Buffalo to three more consecutive victories in the AFC East since signing his extension. He recently put together his fourth straight season with 40 or more total touchdowns; no player in NFL history had previously accomplished this feat. He has won NFL MVP votes in three of the last four seasons.

Buffalo’s offense is led by a player who is, by all accounts, one of the best in the league, and that doesn’t even pay for him as a top-10 player at his position. It’s probably only a matter of time before he and Mahomes (now the 10th highest-paid passer in football) reset the market, but in the meantime, the Bills will take advantage of their market.