With 4-6 potential quarterbacks projected to join new teams this Thursday, Spotrac takes a snapshot look at the contract statuses for every team's current QB room.

Arizona Cardinals

Kyler Murray: 5 years, $196.6M total; 4 years, $150M practical
Releasable: 2027-28 Tradable: Now

Desmond Ridder: 2 years, $2.6M (non-guaranteed)

Clayton Tune: 3 years, $3.1M (non-guaranteed)

Atlanta Falcons

Kirk Cousins: 4 years, $180M; 2 years, $100M practical

Taylor Heinicke: 1 year, $2.5M ($1.3M guaranteed)

Baltimore Ravens

Lamar Jackson: 4 years, $180M; 3 years, $128M practical
Releasable: After 2026; Tradable: After 2025

Malik Cunningham: 1 year, $915k

Josh Johnson: 1 year, $1.3M ($1.1M guaranteed)

Buffalo Bills

Josh Allen: 5 years, $189.5M; 2 years, $69.5M practical
Releasable: After 2025; Tradable: After 2024

Mitchell Trubisky: 2 years, $5.25M; 1 year, $2.75M practical

Shane Buechele: 1 year, $1M ($40k guaranteed)

Carolina Panthers

Bryce Young: 3 years, $12.6M, guaranteed (+ 2027 option)

Andy Dalton: 1 year, $4M ($2M guaranteed)

Chicago Bears

#1 Pick: 4 years, $40M, guaranteed (+ 2028 option)

Tyson Bagent: 2 years, $2M (non-guaranteed)

Brett Rypien: 1 year, $1.1M (non-guaranteed)

Cincinnati Bengals

Joe Burrow: 6 years, $264.5M; 4 years, $173.5M practical
Releasable: After 2027; Tradable: After 2025

Jake Browning:  1 year, $915k

Cleveland Browns

Deshaun Watson: 3 years, $138M, guaranteed
Releasable: N/A; Tradable: Now

Jameis Winston: 1 year, $4M, guaranteed

Dorian Thompson-Robinson: 3 years, $3.1M (non-guaranteed)

Tyler Huntley:  1 year, $1.3M ($470k guaranteed)

Dallas Cowboys

Dak Prescott: 1 year, $34M ($5M guaranteed)

Trey Lance: 1 year, $5.3M, guaranteed (+2025 option)

Cooper Rush: 1 year, $2.25M (non-guaranteed)

Denver Broncos

Jarrett Stidham: 1 year, $6M ($2M guaranteed)

Zach Wilson: 1 year, $2.7M, guaranteed (+2025 option)

Ben DiNucci: 1 year, $985k

Detroit Lions

Jared Goff: 1 year, $27.3M ($5M guaranteed)

Hendon Hooker: 3 years, $3.8M (non-guaranteed)

Nate Sudfeld: 1 year, $1.2M ($300k guaranteed)

Green Bay Packers

Jordan Love: 1 year, $11M (guaranteed)

Sean Clifford: 3 years, $3.1M (non-guaranteed)

Alex McGough: 1 year, $915k

Houston Texans

C.J. Stroud: 3 years, $12.1M, guaranteed (+2027 option)

Case Keenum: 1 year, $3M ($1M guaranteed)

Davis Mills: 1 year, $3.1M (non-guaranteed)

Tim Boyle: 1 year, $1.1M (non-guaranteed)

Indianapolis Colts

Anthony Richardson: 3 years, $11.4M, guaranteed (+2027 option)

Joe Flacco: 1 year, $4.5M (guaranteed)

Sam Ehlinger: 1 year, $1M (non-guaranteed)

Jacksonville Jaguars

Trevor Lawrence: 1 year, $5.6M, guaranteed (+2027 option)

Mac Jones: 1 year, $2.7M, guaranteed (+2027 option)

C.J. Beathard: 1 year, $1.9M (non-guaranteed)

Kansas City Chiefs

Patrick Mahomes: 8 years, $361.5M; 4 years, $205.4M practical
Releasable: After 2025; Tradable: Now

Carson Wentz: 1 year, $3.3M ($2.2M guaranteed)

Ian Book: 1 year, $985k

Chris Oladokun: 1 year, $805k

Las Vegas Raiders

Aidan O'Connell: 3 years, $3.1M (non-guaranteed)

Gardner Minshew: 2 years, $25M ($15M guaranteed)

Anthony Brown: 1 year, $915k

Los Angeles Chargers

Justin Herbert: 6 years, $279.1M; 5 years, $228.6M practical
Releasable: After 2026; Tradable: After 2026

Easton Stick: 1 year, $2.6M ($1.4M guaranteed)

Max Duggan: 1 year, $795k

Los Angeles Rams

Matthew Stafford: 3 years, $94M; 1 year, $41M practical
Releasable: After 2024; Tradable: Now

Jimmy Garoppolo: 1 year, $3.1M ($3M guaranteed)

Stetson Bennett: 3 years, $3M (non-guaranteed)

Dresser Winn: 2 years, $1.7M (non-guaranteed)

Miami Dolphins

Tua Tagovailoa: 1 year, $23M (guaranteed)

Mike White: 1 year, $3.5M (non-guaranteed)

Skylar Thompson: 2 years, $2M (non-guaranteed)

Minnesota Vikings

Sam Darnold: 1 year, $10M ($8.75M guaranteed)

Nick Mullens: 1 year, $1.9M (non-guaranteed)

Jaren Hall: 3 years, $3M (non-guaranteed)

New England Patriots

#3 Overall Pick: 4 years, $36M, guaranteed (+2028 option)

Jacoby Brissett: 1 year, $8M ($6.5M guaranteed)

Bailey Zappe: 1 year, $985k

Nathan Rourke: 1 year, $915k

New Orleans Saints

Derek Carr: 3 years, $120M; 1 year, $40M practical
Releasable: After 2024; Tradable: Now

Nathan Peterman: 1 year, $1.3M ($80k guaranteed)

Jake Haener: 3 years, $3.1M (non-guaranteed)

Kellen Mond: 1 year, $985k

New York Giants

Daniel Jones: 3 years, $114M; 1 year, $36M practical

Drew Lock: 1 year, $5M (guaranteed)

Tommy DeVito: 1 year, $915k

New York Jets

Aaron Rodgers: 2 years, $75.6M; 1 year, $38.1M practical

Tyrod Taylor: 2 years, $12M ($8.5M guaranteed)

Philadelphia Eagles

Jalen Hurts: 5 years, $235M; 4 years, $184M practical
Releasable: After 2027; Tradable: Next Summer

Kenny Pickett: 2 years, $4.6M, guaranteed (+2026 option)

Will Grier: 1 year, $1.1M (non-guaranteed)

Tanner McKee: 3 years, $3.1M (non-guaranteed)

Pittsburgh Steelers

Russell Wilson: 1 year, $1.21M (guaranteed)

Justin Fields: 1 year, $3.2M, guaranteed (+2025 option)

Kyle Allen: 1 year, $1.3M ($167k guaranteed)

San Francisco 49ers

Brock Purdy: 2 years, $2M (non-guaranteed)

Joshua Dobbs: 1 year, $2.2M (guaranteed)

Brandon Allen: 1 year, $2M ($700k guaranteed)

Seattle Seahawks

Geno Smith: 2 years, $47.5M; 1 year, $22.5M practical

Sam Howell: 2 years, $2M (non-guaranteed)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Baker Mayfield: 3 years, $100M; 1 year, $40M practical

John Wolford: 1 year, $1.3M ($400k guaranteed)

Kyle Trask: 1 year $1.4M (non-guaranteed)

Tennessee Titans

Will Levis: 3 years, $4.85M ($4M guaranteed)

Mason Rudolph: 1 year, $2.8M ($2.7M guaranteed)

Malik Willis: 2 years, $2.5M (non-guaranteed)

Washington Commanders

#2 Overall Pick: 4 years, $37M, guaranteed (+2028 option)

Marcus Mariota: 1 year, $6M ($5.4M guaranteed)

Jeff Driskel: 1 year, $1.1M (non-guaranteed)

Jake Fromm: 1 year, $985k

Scottie Scheffler wins the RBC Heritage. Scheffler earns $3.6 million million bringing his 2024 on-course earnings to $18.69 and his career on-course earnings to $61.26 million. 

RBC Heritage Top 10 Payouts

Full Results

2024 Earnings Leaders Update

Full List

Details

San Diego acquires: María Sánchez

Houston acquires: $300,000 in intra-league Transfer Funds, $200,000 in Allocation Money, a 2024 International Slot and a 2025 International Slot

Analysis

Although requested back in March, Houston Dash forward María Sánchez’s move to San Diego was finalized just hours before the deadline of the NWSL Primary Window Closing on Friday. The Wave will pick up Sánchez’s current contract which will keep her in San Diego through the 2026 season with an option for 2027. In exchange for Sánchez, San Diego is sending $300,000 in intra-league transfer funds, $200,000 in allocation money, and an international slot in 2024 and 2025 to the Dash. 

Prior to the Sánchez trade, the biggest sum of money that passed between two NWSL teams on a single deal was $350,000 in allocation money being sent along with a fourth round future pick from NJ/NY Gotham FC to the Orlando Pride for the 2023 No. 2 overall pick. Gotham ended up flipping the pick—which would become forward Michelle Cooper—to Kansas City for forward Lynn Williams. 

The Wave played yesterday against Orlando in a rough 1-0 loss that could’ve easily seen Orlando score three or more goals, while the Wave were held to just four shots and one on target.  They will head home today after two weeks on the road to host expansion side Bay FC next weekend. 

“We are thrilled to bring María to San Diego and offer her a warm welcome to our club and

community,” said San Diego Wave FC President Jill Ellis said in a release. “For club and country, María has been an integral part of every team she has been on and her talent will be a wonderful addition to the club.”

It will be really interesting to see how Sánchez fits in a San Diego side which is stacked up top, with nine forwards currently on the roster, or whether Sánchez will drop back into the midfield. 

Houston is already in Portland ahead of their evening matchup against the Thorns and then will continue their road series facing Utah next weekend. Currently sitting 11th in the table, the Dash only have four points through four games, and have been really struggling to find their footing under new head coach Fran Alonso. They will be facing a bottom of the table Portland Thorns who are currently under the direction of a new interim head coach as of Tuesday. Sanchez has played all but 12 minutes of the Dash’s regular season thus far, and it will be interesting to see who steps up in her absence. 

In what the team called two ‘strategic trades’ prior to the closing of the NWSL Trade Window, Angel City sent defender Paige Nielsen to the Houston Dash for $50,000 in allocation money and $50,000 in transfer funds and midfielder Amandine Henry was sent to the Utah Royals in exchange for $75,000 in allocation money.

Seeing that Angel City was at 26 active players and Christen Press continues to progress in her return to play journey, most people expected the Los Angeles based side would need to do something to make sure that there was an active roster spot for Press to drop into but most expected it to be as simple as waiving a player.

Without any clarity into salaries and where the team sits on the salary cap, this reads like Angel City didn’t have a plan for the cap space that Press takes up once she’s on the active roster, and was left scrambling to make sure that it existed at the 11th hour, and they do get some cash back to potentially sign an additional player in the secondary window. 

The loss of Henry and Nielsen on the pitch for Angel City will be hard felt by the team who is currently sitting in tenth in the table, only getting four points out of the first four games.

Houston Acquires Paige Nielsen

Houston acquires: Paige Nielsen

Angel City acquires: $50,000 in Allocation Money and $50,000 in Transfer Funds

Trading away Nielsen, a player who started 21 matches for ACFC last year and has started three of the four matches this season and was not on many people’s radar as how to get the roster space opened up and back under 26.

This is a good move for Houston, who reportedly received a large sum of money from San Diego in return for Maria Sanchez and who had two starting defenders move to non-active roster this year on maternity leave.

The real losers in this deal are the players who now have to quickly pack up their lives, move states, and prepare to transition onto a new team — having missed an important part of the team building process, preseason. Nielsen joined Angel City from their start in 2022 and was one of their most consistent performers the entirety of last season, and now just before week 5 of play finds herself packing up and heading to Houston. 

Utah Acquires Amandine Henry

Utah acquires: Amandine Henry

Angel City acquires: $75,000 in allocation money

The Nielsen trade was leaked yesterday, but the additional loss of French national team player Amandine Henry, who just joined the squad last summer and quickly became the lynchpin in the midfield, was definitely a surprise to most. Henry arrived less than a year ago and was signed on a three year contract with an option year, expecting to stay in Angel City through 2026 or potentially 2027 and now finds herself in Utah.

For Utah, it’s also a move that makes sense because Amandine Henry is the caliber of player any team would be lucky to have, and as seen in the opening few games, a defensive midfielder like Henry would have an immediate impact there.

The NWSL’s Primary Trade and Transfer window closes on Friday at midnight eastern time, and will remain closed until August 1st, covering a span of 11 regular season games. With the window closed, teams cannot add or sign any transfers, trades, or international transfer certificates (needed when players switch leagues even as free agents), so the rosters will be pretty much set for the coming months.

Something that is unique about the NWSL is that unlike a majority of the European leagues, the season runs from mid-March to mid-November, with a summer break for the Olympics and a winter offseason. The traditionally european schedule will have games run from mid-September to end of May, with a short break over the winter holidays and summer is off. The true impact of this misalignment in game schedule is that the transfer/trade windows don’t really align either.

In 2023, the Secondary NWSL Window went from the end of June to the end of July, better aligning with the end of the European season and leading into the FIFA World Cup. This season, the window won’t open until midway through the 2024 Paris Olympics, creating a significantly shorter ramp for any additional players to mesh and build cohesion with their new teammates heading into the backend of the season.

Currently, five of the fourteen teams are at the limit of 26 active players, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that they can’t add any additional players in the Secondary Window or upgrade any current players off of the non-active roster.

*Washington Spirit signing Leicy Santos was counted toward the active player count since she has already signed although she has not arrived yet.

Contract Structures

Contracts with players can be either guaranteed or semi-guaranteed, unfortunately, there really is no clarity on semi-guaranteed status of contracts of players. Teams may waive players with semi-guaranteed contracts at any time ahead of the yearly roster freeze date (this year it is October 10th), but for players with guaranteed contracts, there are limits. Teams are only able to buy-out one guaranteed contract per season before the buy-out starts impacting the salary cap.

Loaning Players

Unlike most soccer leagues, the NWSL does not allow players to be loaned out to other teams in the NWSL, i.e. inside the league you cannot trade a player for only a finite amount of time. When the windows are closed, what really matters is that new players cannot be added, however, players can be loaned out external to the NWSL while the windows are closed and get back that salary cap space and the active roster space. The issue with the outgoing loans and transfers is that when the NWSL is playing games, a large majority of leagues do not have their own windows open to be able to add an additional player thus limiting the options for loans and transfers through the first half of the season.

Teams to Watch

The teams to watch in the coming months will be those teams who don’t necessarily have the roster space currently available to absorb their 2022 or 2023 SEI’s rejoining the active roster — Angel City, Chicago, Kansas City, Gotham, and Orlando.  

By the time that the Secondary Window opens, the NWSL will be at 15 out of 26 regular season games. Last year, roughly 15 players were signed mid-year with the reigning NWSL Champions NJ/NY Gotham adding three players midyear who played a big role in their playoff run: Esther, Maitane, and Katie Stengel.

Transfers by Country

Looking back at 2023 as a whole, the USA once again completed the highest number of transfers in the world, showing a 33.9% increase in transfers compared to 2022. These 225 transfers (both internal and external) represented more than 10% of all international transfers in 2023.

Photo from 2023 FIFA Global Transfer Report

Of those, 73 were transfers into the league, with 14 of those players coming from Australia. Racing Louisville was the only NWSL side to make the list of top ten clubs by number of incoming transfers, ending up fifth with 12.

And just a reminder, that although the window will close on Friday, what matters most is that the deals are approved by the league by the cutoff time. Teams are not required to publicly announce any additions by any deadline so there is a chance that there are additional moves/additions to be announced.

Related:
NWSL Transactions

Forward Maria Sanchez entered the 2023-24 offseason as a restricted free agent—she could negotiate with other teams but her originating team, the Houston Dash, would have the opportunity to match any external offers and keep the attacker on their roster. In December the forward signed a three year contract with a fourth year option reportedly worth $1.5million, which at the time made her the highest paid NWSL player. Now just four months later, ESPN’s Jeff Kassouf reports that the forward has requested a trade from the Dash ahead of the primary trade/transfer window closing on Friday. 

Should a trade not occur by Friday, Sanchez will be stuck in Houston at least until the secondary window opens August 1st. Additional reporting has confirmed that Sanchez requested the trade at least two weeks ago ahead of Houston’s win against expansion side Bay FC. The Dash currently sit 11th in the table with only one win and one draw in four matches. 

Part of the NWSL CBA has verbiage that player’s salaries will not be disclosed to third parties by the NWSL or its teams without written consent of the NWSL Players Association. This means that although Sanchez’s new total compensation was reported back in December, there is no transparency on where any of the 14 teams sit in terms of the salary cap and whether they could afford Sanchez if they are in fact looking for an additional attacking player before the window closes. 

Outside of her salary fitting into an NWSL team's salary cap, the other issue that Sanchez will run into is that although the NWSL trade/transfer window does have five days until it closes, a lot of other leagues are not in an open window so the options for Sanchez outside of the NWSL are fairly limited if she wants to move immediately.

Related:

Houston Dash Roster Outlook

Houston Dash Transactions

Scottie Scheffler wins the Masters Tournament and his second green jacket. Scheffler earns $3.6 million million bringing his 2024 on-course earnings to $15.1 and his career on-course earnings to $57.7 million. 

Masters Tournament Open Top 10 Payouts

Full Results

2024 Earnings Leaders Update

Full List

A quick look at the top earning players at the Masters Tournament: all-time, last 10 years, last 5 years, last 2 years and a recap of the Top-10 earnings/results from the 2023 Masters Tournament.

All-Time Masters Earners

Since 2014 - Last 10 Years

Since 2019 - Last 5 Years

Since 2022 - Last 2 Years

The 2023 Masters Tournament Top 10 Payouts

Full Breakdown

Way ahead of the October deadline to exercise options on potential free agents, here’s six restricted free agents to keep an eye on in the coming months for extensions to be signed as teams look at their long term plans. 

Reminder, unrestricted free agents are more like a traditional free agent, whereas restricted free agents can negotiate with other teams but then the originating team has seven days to fiscally match the offer and keep the player on their roster.

However, if an originating team does not make an offer to a restricted free agent before December 31st of the calendar year, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent. 

Here’s six players to keep an eye on, in alphabetical order:

1. Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash)

Status: Contract through 2024

Alozie went undrafted in the 2019 NWSL Draft, and proceeded to sign with a team abroad for the 2020 season before Covid-19 ended the season early. She ended up in Houston as an NRI in the 2021 preseason and eventually was signed to a National Team Replacement Player (NTRP) contract before being signed through the end of the season. Since then, she has had an important role for the Dash, and in 2023 played over 1000 minutes with four goals, and one assist. She is also on the Nigerian National Team, and helped the Super Falcons’ run to the round of 16 at the 2023 FIFA World Cup. 

2. Elyse Bennett (San Diego Wave)

Status: Contract through 2024, with club option for 2025

Bennett spent the 2023 season with the Reign, and played in 22 games with seven starts, two goals, and two assists, She ended up unprotected in the 2024 Expansion Draft and was picked up by Utah as their first pick. Two days after the Expansion Draft, she was traded to the San Diego Wave. Bennett got the start for San Diego in the 2024 Challenge Cup Championship that they won 1–0.  

3. Alana Cook (Seattle Reign)

Status: Contract through 2024

Originally joining the Reign on a short term loan for the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup from French side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Cook ended up transferring to the Seattle-based side in 2021 on a three year contract with an additional option year for 2024. In 2023, Cook started 21 matches for the Reign, and had 34 interceptions and 16 blocks. Cook joined the USWNT in New Zealand and Australia for the 2023 FIFA World Cup, and started in the send-off match but didn’t see any playing time during the tournament. After a minor knee injury in the Reign 2024 preseason, Cook was replaced on the USWNT roster for the Concacaf W Gold Cup. She missed the first two matches of the 2024 regular season, but is currently building her minutes back up and played 32 in the latest game for the Reign. 

4. Jordyn Huitema (Seattle Reign)

Status: Contract through 2024

Although only 22, Huitema is on her fifth season as a pro and her third in the NWSL. Joining the Reign from PSG, the Canadian National Team forward played in 23 games in 2023 for Seattle including 17 starts and earning five goals. Standing at 5’11”, Huitema is an aerial threat, with three of her 2023 goals coming from her head and an overall 58% aerial duel success. She had an 82nd minute diving header for Canada to equalize and force penalty kicks in the Concacaf W Gold Cup semifinal. In the 2024 SheBelieves Cup Final on Tuesday, Huitema got the start for Canada but ended up subbing off injured in stoppage time in the first half. 

5. Kerolin (North Carolina Courage)

Status: Contract through 2024

The reigning NWSL MVP, Kerolin had 19 starts for the Courage in 2023, with ten goals, three assists, and a 79% passing accuracy. The big question on the Brazilian national team forward’s future is the ACL tear which occurred in the final game of the 2023 regular season. The ACL epidemic has been rampant in the last few years, and while some players have been able to fully return to play in less than a year, others have taken almost two years to recover. If Kerolin is healthy, it could easily become a bidding war to add such a dynamic player to any teams’ attack. 

6. Delanie Sheehan (NJNY Gotham)

Status: Contract through 2024, with club option for 2025

After only playing in nine matches for Gotham in 2022, Sheehan became a pivotal part of the Gotham revamp in 2023 playing in 21 games and over 1500 minutes. She had a 78% passing accuracy with two assists, and her goal against the Courage in the first round of the playoffs aided Gotham’s postseason run. So far in 2024 Sheehan has played in every minute of all of Gotham’s games between the 2024 Challenge Cup and their two regular season matches.

Related:

NWSL Transactions