The NFL All-Value Team: Offense
Let's pick a starting offensive lineup of NFL players who have the best value contract at each position.
In this age of the NFL's ever-increasing salary cap and, thus, player salaries continuing to rise, it can sometimes be tough to find players that represent great value in a contract.
But I decided to see if I could put together a starting lineup of players with the best value contracts at their position. I did put a few conditions in place, though, to ensure that I was looking at veterans who are completing multi-year deals.
The conditions I put in place for this exercise:
The player may not be under a rookie contract, meaning either a recently drafted player or an undrafted player whose salaries are set in place based on the salary cap and draft position.
The player must not have signed a one-year deal — he needed to have signed for at least two, but preferably three or more years.
The player must not be in the final year of his current deal (in other words, he's not somebody who is up for an extension and could be in line for more money).
Only the player's current contract may be considered — meaning if he signed a new contract this offseason, that's the contract I take into account.
In some cases, it was easy to pull out a player, but in other cases, it wasn't as easy. That's because some players on the list aren't what you would truly call value signings, but their deals look better when compared to the rest of the market.
I'll do the offense this week and, next week, we'll look at the defense.
Quarterback: Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
The 10-year, $450M contract Mahomes received back in 2020 did put him at the top of the quarterback market but the length of the contract gave the Chiefs cost control at a time when it wasn't unusual to see the next big QB contract go to whoever happened to be up for an extension. The Chiefs have reworked the deal to give Mahomes a raise but, to this day, it remains the best value because the Chiefs have him under contract through 2031, meaning they don't have to worry about any re-setting of the market until Mahomes nears the end of his career.
Running back: Josh Jacobs, Packers
I had wondered how Jacobs was going to hold up after logging so many touches in his five seasons with the Raiders. But the Packers signed him to a reasonable deal and he was again productive in 2024. The Packers have him on a cap-friendly number for 2025 and can get out of the deal in 2026 if necessary. For the record, I would have gone with Saquon Barkley here, but after the Eagles gave him a new contract and a considerable raise, Jacobs got the nod.
Wide receiver: DJ Moore, Bears
With so many receivers passing the $30M APY mark — and a couple of No. 2 receivers coming close to that — Moore's deal comes off as a pretty good value. The Bears extended him in 2024, one year after acquiring him in a blockbuster trade with the Panthers, and he's been a consistent No. 1 receiver through his first two seasons. The Bears are committed to him through 2026, but once he turns 30 in 2027, they have a way to get out of the deal. But they were wise to get him extended when they did and thus not have to pay the rising prices for top receivers.
Tight end: Hunter Henry, Patriots
I was admittedly skeptical when the Patriots gave Henry a three-year, $37.5M contract back in 2021 but he was productive for them. It could have been easy for the Patriots to give him even more money when that deal was set to expire, but to their credit, they extended him at a reasonable amount, for less than what he signed for in 2021. They will be able to move on from Henry in 2026 if necessary, but if he remains productive, it will be interesting to see if the Patriots try to keep him for a couple more years.
Left tackle: Alaric Jackson, Rams
Jackson could have netted a big payday in free agency, given that there weren't many quality options available for 2025. But the Rams managed to keep him, signing him to a deal that paid him well but didn't hit the top of the market. The Rams are only committed to him for two seasons but, if he continues to play well, he could be in line for an extension next season.
Left guard: Ezra Cleveland, Jaguars
There were several guards who signed for a lot of money in 2024 but the Jaguars were able to get a solid player at a reasonable price. Though Cleveland isn't an elite player, he is a good one and the Jaguars didn't have to overpay him in free agency. While it's not a given that he'll get an extension if he plays well in 2025, this is the type of signing that can give you a reasonable return.
Center: Aaron Brewer, Dolphins
Brewer wasn't a great option in free agency in 2024 but the Dolphins were smart to not pay him a double-digit APY salary. He turned in what may have been his best season as a pro. Like Cleveland, Brewer isn't elite but showed he can play well and that a team doesn't have to overpay to get good production.
Right guard: Cesar Ruiz, Saints
There aren't any contracts for right guards that would be considered great-value deals, but when it comes to the guards making more than $10M APY, Ruiz's deal looks good compared to others. The Saints got him extended in 2023 and he's been consistent for them. This is a good example of why teams should consider extending players they want to keep before they reach free agency, should the market get crazy.
Right tackle: Spencer Brown, Bills
There are several right tackles that got paid a lot of money but haven't quite lived up to their deals, while a couple of them did get paid a lot and have shown more. Brown might be the best example of a right tackle who is paid near the top of the market but has lived up to his deal. The good thing is that Brown is just 27 years old and under contract through 2028, so the Bills should have some cost control. Brown is another example of why it's a good idea to extend players you want to keep before they reach free agency.