The 2026 NFL Draft begins tonight! Here is a breakdown of how much money all of the first-round picks will make in their rookie season and how those rookie contracts work.

How do NFL rookie salaries work?

According to the NFL’s CBA, every rookie draft pick is guaranteed a four-year contract with the team that selects them. For first-round picks, there is a fifth-year team option as well. However, the value of those contracts is almost entirely based on where in the NFL Draft the player is selected. There is little to no bargaining room for players or teams to adjust those values. Based on the 2020 CBA, the minimum rookie salary for players taken in the 2026 NFL Draft is $885,000. However, that minimum salary really only applies to undrafted free agents. Every player drafted in the 2026 NFL Draft will make more money than that.

There is a scale that ranges all the way from the No. 1 overall pick to the No. 248 pick, which gets you more money by being even just one pick higher on the draft board. Only for the final 10 picks in the NFL Draft, No. 248 through Mr. Irrelevant No. 257, will their rookie contracts be the same value. There is no room to re-negotiate contracts until after a player’s third season. So whether you are a Super Bowl-winning quarterback in your first two seasons or barely see the field, your contract cannot be adjusted.

How much do first-round picks make in the NFL?

The most dramatic gaps in contract value are naturally in the first round. While any first-round pick is making good money in their first NFL contract, players in the top five or even top 10 are making significantly more money than whoever gets taken 32nd. The No. 1 overall pick, likely Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders, will have a rookie contract worth $54,565,500. Most of that money will come through a signing bonus. Mendoza’s base salary as the No. 1 overall pick would be the rookie minimum of $885,000. However, he would also receive $9,695,346 in a prorated signing bonus.

For the next three years, his base salary would only marginally increase, but he would continue to get $9,695,346 from his prorated signing bonus each of the three years. Mendoza would also receive a small roster bonus for being on the team at the start of each of those seasons. For a first-round pick, this money is entirely guaranteed.

Each of the top three picks in the 2026 NFL Draft is guaranteed a contract worth at least $50,000,000. Picks 4-6 are guaranteed at least $40,000,000, picks 7-9 are guaranteed at least $30,000,000, picks 10-19 are guaranteed at least $20,000,000 and the rest of the first-round picks are guaranteed at least $16.4 million contracts. So, while it might not seem too significant on draft night, the difference between being the 6th overall pick and the 12th overall pick is a difference of nearly $15 million on your rookie contract.

For a full list of the exact contract values assigned to each draft pick, check out the list on Spotrac.