Patrick Mahomes’ recent record-setting extension with the Kansas City Chiefs propelled him to the top of the NFL market, a rightful place for someone who has spent the past seven years as a Tier 1 selection in The Athletic’s annual Quarterback Tiers produced by Mike Sando.

Mahomes takes over the top spot from the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott, who in 2024 became the first NFL player to reach $60 million in average annual value. Prescott signed that deal hours before the Cowboys’ 2024 season opener in Cleveland and blew past the previous high of $55 million set by the Cincinnati Bengals’ Joe Burrow, Jacksonville Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence and Green Bay Packers’ Jordan Love.

Mahomes had last signed an extension in 2020, with his 10-year, $450 million deal at the time giving him the league’s highest average salary. By 2025, he was making the same annually as Atlanta Falcons backup quarterback Kirk Cousins and trailed players such as the Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns, Kyler Murray, then of the Arizona Cardinals, and Tua Tagovailoa, then of the Miami Dolphins. Cousins, Murray and Tagovailoa were all released in cap-saving moves this offseason, and Watson’s contract might be the worst in NFL history.

With Mahomes’ new deal, here’s a look at what the top of the quarterbacks market — players with at least $50 million AAV — looks like in 2026:

The significance of Mahomes’ deal

Mahomes’ signing of his new extension is a big step toward the recorrection of the top of the quarterbacks market.

Prescott has sat atop this market — by a considerable margin — since he signed a four-year, $240 million extension with the Cowboys in September 2024. That $60 million in average annual value has been the highest for any player in the league since that point, even as other star quarterbacks such as the Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen signed extensions.

Prescott and the Cowboys were in a unique situation. Prescott was entering the final year of his previous extension. That contract stated the Cowboys could not place the franchise tag on Prescott. So he was heading for free agency after the 2024 season if the Cowboys did not extend him. Their only other option was to trade him. Prescott had mountains of leverage. As a result, the Cowboys were effectively forced to pay Prescott way above market rate.

Prescott was making 9 percent more than the next highest-paid quarterback in AAV. Prescott is a very good quarterback. He is not the best at his position by a 9 percent margin. Even after his best NFL season, when he finished second in MVP voting in 2023, Prescott ranked ninth in Sando’s QB Tiers.

Now, the best quarterback in the league is being paid as such. According to contract details from ESPN, Mahomes will slot in at $64 million in average annual value, surpassing Prescott.

Allen signed his extension with the Bills in March 2025. At six years, $330 million, Allen slotted in at $55 million in AAV. That put him directly in line with Burrow, Love and Lawrence. This offseason, the Los Angeles Rams’ Matthew Stafford signed a one-year extension that also came in at $55 million.

This $55 million plateau had become the de facto top of market, considering Prescott had so substantially topped all other deals because of his unusually strong negotiating position.

Who is next in line to get paid?

With Mahomes breaking through that $60 million plateau, the question is: Who comes next?

Before his contract extension, Mahomes ranked 13th in AAV among quarterbacks. The Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson has two years remaining on his deal and is 11th in AAV after Mahomes’ extension. Jackson could be the next quarterback to break the $60 million threshold. Other quarterbacks, such as Burrow, could want a pay bump now the market has shifted.

Elsewhere in the quarterbacks market, Baker Mayfield is on the final year of his contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He is 16th in AVV at $33.33 million. A rising tide lifts all boats. Will Mayfield get a bump into the Daniel Jones range, closer to $44 million to 45 million? Will he jump into the $50 million range? For now, he said he and the Bucs are “not anywhere close” to a deal.

Young quarterbacks C.J. Stroud and Bryce Young are under contract through 2027 on the fifth-year options of their rookie deals. But they are eligible for extensions because they have accrued three seasons. What type of deals will they get?

And additionally, will Super Bowl champion Sam Darnold look for more money from the Seattle Seahawks after last season’s run? He is the 15th-highest paid QB in AAV, but he is making $10.5 million less than Jones is with the Indianapolis Colts.

The top of the QB market was out of whack for nearly two years because of the Prescott deal. With the Mahomes extension, the top of that market now makes more sense in terms of the quality of the player. We will see how that affects the pecking order. — Daniel Popper, NFL senior writer