Shedeur Sanders Made More Than 12 Prominent NFL QBs In 2025
Shedeur Sanders didn't have a huge rookie year - yes, he made the Pro Bowl, but his overall stats weren't anything that impressive - but he did shine in one department: money.
The former University of Colorado quarterback was a fifth round NFL Draft pick. He had roughly $1 million per year guaranteed in his contract. But Sanders ended up receiving a massive payday from the National Football League.
Sanders earned close to $20 million as a result of his jersey sales, memorabilia and more, though official NFL partnerships.
Front Office Sports broke the big news.
"Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders's slide from expected high first-round pick in the 2025 Draft to the 144th slot in the fifth round deprived him of a guaranteed contract and a mega-payday, leaving him with a slotted average annual salary of $1.005 million," they reported.
"But now the heavily-hyped son of Deion Sanders is laughing all the way to the bank, as he earned a record-shattering $17.7 million in group licensing income over the course of the season, according to the NFL Players Association annual report filed this week with the Department of Labor."
When you add together his salary and his NFLPA earnings, he made more than $18 million in his first season in the league.
That's more than 12 notable quarterbacks made in 2025
Sanders ended up taking home more than 12 notable NFL quarterbacks for his work during the 2025 season:
- C.J. Stroud
- Caleb Williams
- Jayden Daniels
- Bo Nix
- Drake Maye
- J.J McCarthy
- Michael Penix Jr.
- Sam Darnold
- Justin Fields
- Geno Smith
- Russell Wilson
- Brock Purdy
Sanders still has work to do to prove himself as an NFL quarterback, of course, but he doesn't have anything to prove with his bank account at this point, that's clear.
Copyright The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved
This story was originally published May 31, 2026 at 6:34 AM.