After a 2024 contract renegotiation, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was set to make just $14.5 million for the 2025 season. Even before winning the NFL MVP in February, that didn’t make a lot of sense.
Surprising most folks in NFL circles, the Bills and Allen were able to negotiate a new deal before the 2025 league year even opened, which means they’ve been working on it for the last 12 months. The Bills ripped up his old contract and gave him a brand new one in order better make sense of the cap hits.
In the end. instead of $14.5 million, Allen will make $58 million in 2025.
Where does Josh Allen’s contract rank in NFL history?
It’s clear Allen’s camp targeted two contracts in their negotiations; Dak Prescott and Deshaun Watson.
The deal is a six-year, $330 million contract which averages $55 million per season. It’s the second-highest average annual value in NFL history for new money in a contract BUT it’s the highest number in NFL history for actual execution. Dak Prescott signed for four years, $240 million but when you add the remaining year of his deal into the equation, he will make $53.8 million per season end to end. Lamar Jackson’s is $52.5 million per season from signing to conclusion. Allen’s old deal was ripped up and replaced, so he’ll make an average of $55 million in the deal.
Allen’s deal also sets the NFL record for four-year cash flow, with $220 million in the first four years. Prescott makes $219 million in the first four years.
It’s the most ‘guaranteed money’ in NFL history but the second-most fully guaranteed money in NFL history behind only Watson.
How much guaranteed money did Josh Allen receive from the Bills?
The guaranteed money starts with a $56.745 million signing bonus and his veteran minimum salary of $1.255 million totals $58 million guaranteed money in Year 1. Year 2 in 2026 is also fully guaranteed to the tune of $55 million split between option bonus and base salary. $34.5 million of 2027 compensation is fully guaranteed, so right now it’s ‘only’ $147.5 million fully guaranteed.
An additional $18 million in 2027 is guaranteed for injury, but he’d have to suffer a career-ending injury to see that money. That switches to a full guarantee in March 2026. All told, that’s $165.5 million guaranteed at signing.
Beyond that, the two sides agreed to rolling guarantees. A rolling guarantee is when future money is guaranteed at some point after signing but ahead of when the money would be paid.
His 2028 compensation of $53.5 fully guarantees in March 2027.
His 2029 roster bonus ($14 million) fully guarantees in March 2028. His 2029 salary ($17 million) guarantees in March 2029 when the rest of that year’s roster bonus kicks in ($21 million plus the previously guaranteed $14 million).
Adding in all the rolling guarantees, they reported it as $250 million guaranteed, including everything between now and March 2029. A portion of the March 2029 roster bonus is the first money that isn’t triggered earlier, so that’s why they put the line there.
Deshaun Watson has the NFL record with $230 fully guaranteed in his contract, and Allen falls well short of that at $147.5 million, but if you include all the rolling guarantees as Allen’s agency certainly wants, the $250 million guaranteed is the most money every guaranteed in a contract.
How are the Bills managing the cap with the Josh Allen contract?
Buffalo built in a signing and option bonuses in each of the first four years of the contract, so they will be pushing out large amount of cap space into the future by prorating those bonuses.
Allen’s previous option bonuses will start dropping off yearly and be replaced by new option bonus proration, so there isn’t a bubble forming where they will stack on top of each other anymore.
Buffalo added two void years to the deal, so all of the money through 2028 can be spread out over five years. They no doubt will add more void years at the end as necessary.
The Bills also have the option to turn those heft roster bonuses in 2029 and 2030 into option bonuses to push out the cap hit. I’d say it’s likely we won’t see an $86 million cap hit for Allen in 2029.
What incentives are in Josh Allen’s contract with the Bills?
For starters the Bills are not using per-game active bonuses for Allen as they do with most players. They did add $500,000 workout bonuses in each of the offseasons after 2025.
There are $3 million in incentives written in, but not reported in detail. His previous deal included $1.5 million for winning league MVP as well as incentives for AFC Championship win and Super Bowl win. I’ll assume those are somehow also represented in this deal.
Yearly salary cap breakdown and contract numbers for Buffalo Bills’ QB Josh Allen
All along, we’ve been breaking down Josh Allen’s contract based on the yearly bonuses, so those will be reflected here. I won’t include dead cap hits for a while, since he isn’t going anywhere. I am going to break out the option bonuses instead of listing them in the year they will trigger.
Note: There are a few rounding errors in here resulting in a difference of less than $10,000 in some calculations.
2025
2021 signing bonus proration: $3.3 million
2022 option bonus: $8.48 million
2023 restructure proration: $5.284 million
2024 restructure proration: $4.175 million
2024 renegotiation proration: $7.5 million
2025 signing bonus proration: $11.349 million
Base salary: $1.255 million (fully guaranteed)
Cap hit: $41.343 million
Yearly cash paid: $58 million (fully guaranteed)
2026
2022 option bonus proration: $8.48 million
2023 restructure proration: $5.284 million
2024 restructure proration: $4.175 million
2024 renegotiation proration: $7.5 million
2025 signing bonus proration: $11.349 million
2026 option bonus proration: $7.6 million
Workout bonus: $500,000
Base salary: $16.5 million (fully guaranteed)
Cap hit: $61.388 million
Yearly cash paid: $55 million (fully guaranteed)
2027
2023 restructure proration: $5.284 million
2024 restructure proration: $4.175 million
2024 renegotiation proration: $7.5 million
2025 signing bonus proration: $11.349 million
2026 option bonus proration: $7.6 million
2027 option bonus proration: $7.7 million
Workout bonus: $500,000
Base salary: $14 million (injury guaranteed, fully guarantees in March 2026)
Cap hit: $58.108 million
Yearly cash paid: $53 million (injury guaranteed, fully guarantees in March 2026)
2028
2024 restructure proration: $4.175 million
2024 renegotiation proration: $7.5 million
2025 signing bonus proration: $11.349 million
2026 option bonus proration: $7.6 million
2027 option bonus proration: $7.7 million
2028 option bonus proration: $7 million
Workout bonus: $500,000
Base salary: $18.5 million (fully guarantees in March 2027)
Cap hit: $64.324 million
Yearly cash paid: $54 million (fully guarantees in March 2027)
2029
2025 signing bonus proration: $11.349 million
2026 option bonus proration: $7.6 million
2027 option bonus proration: $7.7 million
2028 option bonus proration: $7 million
2029 roster bonus: $35 million ($14 million guarantees in March 2028)
Workout bonus: $500,000
Base salary: $17 million (fully guarantees in March 2029)
Cap hit: $86.149 million
Yearly cash paid: $52.5 million
2030
2026 option bonus proration: $7.6 million
2027 option bonus proration: $7.7 million
2028 option bonus proration: $7 million
2030 roster bonus: $30 million
Workout bonus: $500,000
Base salary: $27 million
Cap hit: $79.8 million
Yearly cash paid: $57.5 million
2031 - VOID YEAR
2027 option bonus proration: $7.7 million
2028 option bonus proration: $7 million
Dead cap hit if not on the roster: $21.7 million
Note: This included accelerated dead cap from 2032
2032 - VOID YEAR
2028 option bonus proration: $7 million
Dead cap hit if not on the roster: $7 million
Note: This accelerates to 2031 if he’s not on the roster in 2031