Contract Value
Which players produced like someone paid more than they were — and which did the opposite. Production and pay are each converted to a percentile within position group and season, so a quarterback is never compared to a safety and a 2016 dollar is never compared to a 2022 one. Surplus is the gap between the two.
Best Value — 2026
No qualifying players.
Worst Value — 2026
No qualifying players.
How this is calculated
Production is a position-specific score: passing and rushing output for quarterbacks, PPR points for backs and receivers, tackles, sacks, interceptions and passes defended for defenders, and made kicks for kickers. Pay is the contract's average per year as a share of that season's salary cap, which keeps eras comparable.
Both are converted to percentiles within position group and season. A receiver in the 90th percentile of output on 30th-percentile money scores +60. Ranking by raw production per dollar would just list rookies, because everyone on a minimum deal divides by a tiny number.
Limits. Offensive and defensive linemen, punters, long snappers, and fullbacks are excluded — the box score records nothing they do, so including them would rank them last for reasons that have nothing to do with their play. Cost is the contract's average per year spread evenly across its term; real cap hits are backloaded and restructured constantly. Core special-teams players listed at other positions will still read as underproducing. Contract data ends after the 2022 season.