Many scoffed when an anonymous agent recently told The Athletic that an NFL quarterback will likely reach the $100 million a year mark as early as 2030. Currently, Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers is the league’s highest-paid player at $52.5 million a season with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow in line to take the top spot on the sports salary list after negotiations to give him a new deal are completed.
While the NFL continues to be the big kid on the block — it generated $18.6 billion in revenue last year — other modern superstars are also creeping up on the monumental $100 million per season mark.
In the NBA, Nikola Jokic, of the defending league champion Denver Nuggets, will make $55.2 million during the 2023-24 season. Now the league’s second-highest paid player, Jokic was the first to pass the $55 million mark.
In major league baseball, Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander and Texas Rangers starter Max Scherzer lead MLB with a $43.3 million annual salary. Despite baseball’s record $10.8 billion in revenue in 2022, salaries in America’s Pastime have lagged compared to the NBA and NFL. Aaron Judge, the New York Yankee’s MVP slugger, makes $40 million annually as the top paid offensive player in the game.
In the NHL, where revenue hit just $6.1 billion last season, salaries are probably too far out of range to be considered part of the $100 million a year equation for the next 50 years. Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon is the league’s highest paid player at $12.6 million per season — part of an eight-year $100 million deal. So hockey has its $100 million man, not just per season.
Who wins the race to be the first to $100 million per season?
If we take the agent’s word and go with the premise and NFL quarterback will be earning $100 million a year by 2030, who might that quarterback be and what about budding superstars in the NBA, MLB and other sports who might also get there?
Here are 10 players who could be candidates to break the $100 million-a-season barrier:
Caleb Williams, QB, USC (NFL)
Heading into the 2023 college football season, one standout who is getting universal praise is Southern Cal junior quarterback Caleb Williams. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound Williams is projected to go No. 1 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft and could be “the guy” to break the $100 million mark when he hits his second contract. Billed (fair or not) as the next Patrick Mahomes — and with rookie contracts lasting five years — that puts Williams in a prime spot to get there as if he quickly becomes one of the NFL’s top signal callers during that first contract. He’d be in a perfect position to perhaps push towards that unthinkable annual mark.
Victor Wembanyama, C, San Antonio Spurs (NBA)
As a 19-year-old rookie in the NBA, the French-born import Victor Wembanyama will make $12.6 million his first year as part of his $55 million rookie contract. Billed as the most heralded draft pick and rookie in NBA history (yes, some argue more so than LeBron James), if he reaches his potential, Wembanyama might be one of the favorites to reach that $100 million a season magic mark. With the NBA doing better financially than ever, thanks in part to massive television contracts, and a two-city expansion potentially on the horizon, the financial conditions could be ripe for a massive Wembanyama contract in four or five years.
Shohei Ohtani, P/DH, Los Angeles Angels (MLB)
Outside of marquee pitchers, most players in Major League Baseball would have trouble making this list. But with Shohei Ohtani, it’s different. Both a dominant pitcher and home run hitter, he’s a magical combination not seen since the days of Babe Ruth. With Ohtani set to test the free agent market this offseason, the sky is the limit for the Japanese superstar.
His current deal pays him $30 million a season and by most estimates that will be peanuts compared to his next contract. In 2023, the Yankees gave Aaron Judge the largest free agent contract in history signing him to a nine-year, $360 million contract. Estimates vary but many believe Ohtani’s true value will be somewhere near $75-76 million per season on the now more common 10-to-12 year contact. It doesn’t get him to $100 million but it’s getting closer. Caveat: Ohtani’s 2023 pitching season ended when he suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow. How he recovers, and if he decides to have the dreaded Tommy John surgery, could alter the economics of his next contract.
Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs (NFL)
The two-time Super Bowl champion has little to prove in order to establish he’s the best in the NFL at his position. In 2020, after winning his first championship, Mahomes became the league’s highest-paid player, inking a 10-year $450 million contract that included another $25 million in incentives. His reign as the league’s highest paid player lasted just two years when then-Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers signed a three-year $151 million contract making him the first NFL player to hit the $50 million per season mark.
There’s no question Mahomes signed a team-friendly deal that back ended a fair amount of compensation, meaning his final five seasons he’ll average over the $50 million per season mark. Most observers expect a restructured deal to occur in the next few seasons as Mahomes continues to dominate. That new deal could get him closer to being the first $100 million-a-year player in the NFL.
Lionel Messi, C, Inter Miami FS (MLS)
This one is a bit of a wildcard but still worth considering. The international soccer star doesn’t just make money in Major League Soccer in the United States, but also as a member of Team Argentina in World Cup and international play. Still, his reported $50-60 million annual deal in Miami made him, by far, the highest paid player in MLS and includes a team ownership stake. While the compensation isn’t all cash, the annual take by one of the perfect game’s best squarely puts him on the list. Reports indicate Messi has already made $1.6 billion in his career. While the MLS continues to grow and enjoy increasing popularity, no other MLS player comes close to the earning power of Messi.
Nikola Jokic, C, Denver Nuggets (NBA)
Yes, Jokic was the highest-paid player in the NBA for a hot minute, and he’s a two-time NBA MVP, but at 28-years-old and with plenty left in the tank. Could Jokic make even more than his current $55.2 million a season deal? We think so. With a team continuing to build around him, Jokic will make $62 million by the 2027-28 season. If he continues to play at the level he is now over the next two seasons, he could be in line for another raise. It might be a long shot for him to get to $100 million, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility for this dynamic and valuable player.
Luka Doncic, G, Dallas Mavericks (NBA)
NBA insider Bobby Marks recently predicted during a podcast appearance that the 2019 Rookie of the Year and four-time NBA All-Star will be the first player to reach the $80 million a year contract mark. Could Doncic exceed that and be one of the first to reach the $100 million a year mark? While some consider Jason Tatum the best pro player under 25, Doncic currently holds that distinction in the minds of most pundits who cover the league and it’s nor far-fetched to think he’s in range of the astronomical mark.
Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals (NFL)
To many NFL analysts, Joe Burrow is close to being the best quarterback in the game. If it wasn’t for the dominance of Mahomes, and a close loss to the Rams in the Super Bowl, Burrow might already have earned that distinction. Currently on his rookie deal, which is currently being reworked and extended with the Bengals, Burrow checks all the boxes when it comes to a player who could reach the mark. Burrow’s next contract is estimated to be somewhere around $330 million for six years. That would mean an average salary of $55 million. The question is: can he get to $100 million per season playing his career in the small-market of Cincinnati? Like Mahomes, Burrow is expected to take a backloaded contract to help the Bengals keep a championship competitive roster around him for the next several years.
Jayson Tatum, F, Boston Celtics (NBA)
Tatum is one of basketball’s most exciting young stars and is still playing on his rookie contract paying him a $32.6 million a season salary. Tatum was named the NBA Eastern Conference Finals MVP in 2022 and scored the most points ever in a Game 7 with 51. Tatum is eligible to sign a supermax contract extension in June 2024, which would earn him $318 million over five years and would set his yearly salary at $63.6 million. Along with teammate Jaylen Brown, Tatum is part of one of the most prolific and exciting two-headed monsters in all of basketball.
Jaylen Brown, F/SG, Boston Celtics (NBA)
In July, Brown signed the richest deal in NBA history with a supermax contract extension worth $303.7 million over five years. The deal assured the Celtics could keep together their dynamic duo of Brown and teammate Jayson Tatumn as they continue to be a contender. Brown’s abilities, and his proven track record, earned him the deal but his earning power could accelerate if the Celtics are able to bring home the franchise’s first title in 16 seasons.