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New York Jets
National Football League · AFC East
Salaries & Contracts
The Jets enter 2026 mid-rebuild with meaningful cap space (reported anywhere from ~$27M to ~$77M depending on the source/calculator) but burdened by large dead-money charges from prior departures, most notably ~$35M tied to Aaron Rodgers. The NFL operates a hard salary cap, so the team's notable contracts are best read as cap hits.
~$295-300M (est.) 2026 NFL salary cap · League-wide hard cap; exact 2026 figure set by the NFL/NFLPA.
~$27M-$77M Jets 2026 cap space · Wide spread across sources (Over The Cap vs. Spotrac) depending on roster assumptions.
~$56M+ 2026 dead money · Driven by Rodgers (~$35M), Gardner (~$11M), Williams (~$9.8M) and others no longer on the roster.
| Player | Pos | Salary | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Rodgers (dead money) | QB (departed) | $35.0M≈ | DEAD CAP, not an active salary. Accelerated bonus charge counting against the 2026 cap after his release; the single largest line on the books. |
| Justin Fields | QB | $23.0M≈ | 2026 cap hit on his 2yr/$40M deal ($30M gtd; $10M guaranteed in 2026). Includes ~$10M dead-cap component; later traded, but used here as the headline QB number. |
| Garrett Wilson | WR | $130M / 4yr | Signed a 4yr/$130M extension (July 2025), $90M guaranteed; 2026 cap hit ~$10.1M (early in the deal before signing-bonus proration grows). |
| Breece Hall | RB | $43.5M / 3yr | 3yr/$43.5M extension (early 2026) reported as the richest RB deal in NFL history at signing; ~$14.5M AAV. |
| Sauce Gardner (dead money) | CB (departed) | $11.0M≈ | DEAD CAP charge in 2026 following his departure, not an active salary. |
| Quinnen Williams (dead money) | DT (departed) | $9.8M≈ | DEAD CAP charge in 2026 following his departure, not an active salary. |
| Will McDonald IV | EDGE | approx≈ | Ascending pass-rusher on rookie deal; an extension was flagged as a priority but a 2026 figure isn't reliably reported, so no precise number is shown. |
As of 2026-05-31. NFL contracts are non-guaranteed and restructured constantly, so 'salary' here mixes cap hits, AAVs and dead-money charges rather than guaranteed pay. Full per-player cap tables aren't mirrored (redistribution limits); only the largest/most notable charges are listed, and several figures are roster-snapshot approximations during an active rebuild.
Sources
ESPN Schedule, scores, standings, rosters & logos nflverse EPA — advanced stats Wikipedia — New York Jets Franchise history Wikipedia — History of the New York Jets Franchise history Wikipedia — List of New York Jets seasons Franchise history Pro-Football-Reference — New York Jets (VERIFY ONLY) Franchise history Over The Cap Link-out only; not cached wholesale. Spotrac Link-out only; not cached wholesale. ESPN / NFL.com News reporting; cited for context.