Green Bay Packers: 5 highest paid players in 2019
We all know Aaron Rodgers gets paid the most of any Green Bay Packers. But who are the other four highest paid players heading into the 2019 NFL season?
The Green Bay Packers have always been very good at managing their salary cap. In part, because former general manager Ted Thompson rarely dipped his hand into the free agent pool. This prevented the Packers from overpaying and always kept their salary cap reasonable. The other part is due to Russ Ball. Now the Packers’ executive vice president/director of football operations, Ball has been terrific at keeping Green Bay in great financial shape.
After an offseason spending spree that saw the Packers give out a lot of money to Preston Smith, Za’Darius Smith, Billy Turner and Adrian Amos, Green Bay’s cap space is tighter than normal. Including their signed draft picks, Green Bay has $9.1 million remaining to spend if they so choose according to overthecap.com.
The Packers may very well choose to save that, but it’s certainly there if they want to make another minor splash or two in the remaining free agent pool and shore up some positions. Regardless of their future moves, let’s take a look at their five highest-paid players on the current roster.
5. Mike Daniels
Daniels cap number in 2019 is $10.7 million which is 5.45 percent of the Packers’ cap. He’s in the final year of a four-year, $41 million extension he signed back in December of 2014 and will be an unrestricted free agent after this season.
Daniels’ play has slipped a little bit recently and that’s partly due to his age. However, the Packers have fortunately had Kenny Clark step up his game and fill the gap so it’s hardly been noticeable. Daniels next contract, whether in Green Bay or elsewhere, won’t be this lucrative so the Packers will have a chance to save some money on him next year.
4. Davante Adams
Adams’ cap number is slightly above Daniels at $10.85 million. He accounts for 5.52 percent of Green Bay’s cap in 2019 and he’s probably worth every penny. The stud wide receiver signed a four-year, $58 million extension in December of 2017 and has three years remaining including this season.
Adams proved he can carry the load even when all the defensive attention is on him. He’s just coming into his prime and will be worth every penny of a contract that balloons up to $16.6 million in each of the next two seasons.
3. Jimmy Graham
Graham might have the worst contract on the Packers. He was general managers Brian Gutekunst’s star free agent acquisition last season and he failed to turn out. Graham only caught 55 passes for 636 yards and two touchdowns last season. That’s not worth the price for a player whose cap number will be $12.66 million in 2019.
The Packers can’t get out of his deal this year either, as they’d have to eat nearly the whole number if they were to cut him. Graham’s cap number is $11.66 million next season or they can cut him and only owe $3.66 million to the big guy.
2. David Bakhtiari
Despite having the second-highest cap number on the team at $14.2 million, Bakhtiari is worth every penny of it. He’s the most dependable and solid left tackle in the NFL and he hardly gets noticed for it. There’s even a legit case to say he’s the best in the league.
Bakhtiari holds down 7.2 percent of the cap thanks to an extension he signed in 2016. He still has one more season left after 2019 where he’ll have the same cap number so that’s great news for the Packers. It’s certainly worth paying Bakhtiari this money considering what he does for their biggest investment…
1. Aaron Rodgers
We all knew Rodgers was on the top of this list. He signed the most lucrative deal in NFL history last season and has a whopping cap number of $26.5 million in 2019. That’s 13.49 percent of the cap. That number will jump to $32.6 million next season and continue to climb until it maxes out at $37 million in 2022.
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It may seem like a lot and that’s because it is. However, Rodgers is one of the only players in the NFL who can carry his team deep into the playoffs with little to no help. Hopefully, Green Bay has given him the help he needs. Regardless, Rodgers has proven in the past he’s worth that much money and then some.