With great money comes great responsibility. That isn’t the exact quote, but the same applies. NFL teams that shell out major contracts to stars expect star-level production. For the most part, they get it. The quarterback making the most guaranteed money, Josh Allen, is playing like the best quarterback in the league. The running back with the highest AAV, Jahmyr Gibbs, might be the best running back in the world, even if his team has had its ups and downs.
There are tons of players who are not meeting their end of the bargain, though. Their respective teams paid them, yet they’ve underwhelmed thus far. Let’s dive in, starting with DK Metcalf.
WR DK Metcalf, Pittsburgh Steelers
Contract: 4 years, $132 million
Not only did the Pittsburgh Steelers give up a second-round pick to acquire DK Metcalf, but they handed him a massive four-year, $132 million extension, making him one of the highest-paid wide receivers in NFL history. This was seen as a massive overpayment at the time for a player who, while talented, had just three 1,000-yard seasons in his first five years — and sure enough, it’s aged poorly.
Metcalf had a career-low 850 yards in 15 games in 2025, and this season, he’s caught just eight of his 19 targets for 67 yards. He already has two drops after dropping seven passes all of last season. The Steelers have totaled 23 points in their first two games, which makes sense since their No. 1 receiver has been a no-show. For them to meet expectations, they’ll need Metcalf to show up and earn his money.
QB Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Contract: 3 years, $165 million
Just before the regular season began, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers gave Baker Mayfield a three-year, $165 million extension, making him one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the league and ensuring he’d remain in Tampa Bay long-term. While it was always clear that the Bucs overpaid, it felt like a worthwhile investment for a top 10-to-15 quarterback when the team didn’t have a better backup plan available.
Well, while Mayfield is completing 71 percent of his throws, he’s averaging fewer than 200 passing yards per game and already has four turnovers compared to one passing touchdown. He lost three fumbles in their narrow Week 1 defeat in Cincinnati and threw a game-sealing interception in Week 2 against the lowly Browns. Mayfield is the biggest reason why the Bucs are 0-2, which isn’t what any Tampa Bay fan expected. It’s too early to say they should regret this extension, but if this is the version of Mayfield the Buccaneers are going to get, woof.
DT Quinnen Williams, Dallas Cowboys
Contract: 3 years, $105.9 million
The Dallas Cowboys paid a hefty price to acquire Quinnen Williams from the New York Jets last season, and then they gave him a massive three-year extension, making him one of the highest-paid interior defensive linemen in the NFL. He’s responded by recording zero sacks and seven tackles (1 for loss) thus far.
Williams’ impact has always been felt beyond the box score, but he has a 49.1 PFF grade through two weeks, good for 88th out of 120 interior defensive linemen. The Cowboys are not paying Williams, a player who has a streak of four straight Pro Bowl appearances, high-end money to be below average at his position. His regression thus far is a big reason why their defense, which was supposed to be much improved, hasn’t met expectations yet.
TE Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons
Contract: 3 years, $53 million
A three-year, $53 million contract might not seem massive, but Kyle Pitts is one of the highest-paid tight ends in the NFL. He’s rewarded the Atlanta Falcons‘ investment by reeling in one reception on four targets for 15 yards in two games. Yes, he has more games played than receptions. That’s never good.
Obviously, this is not all on Pitts, who is in the unfortunate situation of having arguably the worst quarterback play in the league thus far. Still, it’s on the high-paid players to make even bad quarterbacks look semi-competent. Drake London hasn’t been great, but he has six times the receptions as Pitts. Bijan Robinson hasn’t been as efficient as he usually is, but he’s still averaging over 125 scrimmage yards per game. Pitts, on the other hand, has fewer receptions and yards than Austin Hooper, the backup tight end. That’s not great.
RB Travis Etienne, New Orleans Saints
Contract: 4 years, $48 million
Much like Pitts, Travis Etienne’s contract doesn’t look massive, but the four-year, $48 million deal the New Orleans Saints gave him this past offseason is the fifth-highest among current running backs in terms of total value. The Saints paid Etienne, who had nearly 1,400 scrimmage yards in 2025, like an elite running back, but they haven’t gotten elite production.
To be fair, he averaged over five yards per carry and had seven receptions in Week 1, but he only had nine carries and 32 receiving yards in that game. He wasn’t given the ball much on the ground, and didn’t get many yards in the air. In Week 2, Etienne had eight carries for 25 yards and two receptions for six yards. Tyler Shough has nearly as many carries as Etienne and Bryce Lance has more receiving yards. Not great!
QB Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers
Contract: 5 years, $262.5 million
The Los Angeles Chargers are the NFL’s most disappointing team thus far, and a big reason why is Justin Herbert’s underperformance. Usually, it’s the other way around; usually Herbert, whether it’s due to his offensive line or the lack of skill position talent around him, doesn’t get enough support to will his team to wins. I’m not here to say this Chargers roster is perfect, but didn’t you think their roster was good enough to beat the Cardinals and Raiders at home?
Instead, the Cardinals lost those games, and Herbert completing 59.3 percent of his throws with more interceptions (three) than passing touchdowns (two) is a big reason why. The Chargers are paying Herbert an average of $52.5 million per year, one of the highest rates at the quarterback position, just for him to struggle mightily against expected bottom-feeders. It’s one thing for Herbert to struggle in the playoffs against elite competition, but his start to the 2026 campaign has been jarring, to say the least.
Add us as a preferred source on Google
