NEWS
The details of Josh Allen’s 6 year, $330M renegotiated contract with the Buffalo Bills have been revealed and, as expected, they’re relatively massive.
The Overall Structure
Allen secures a $56.745M signing bonus (9th highest all-time), plus 3 consecutive option bonuses. This structure is utilized to keep cap figures lower early on in the contract - though as we’ll detail soon, not as low as they could have been in this particular case.
There are large March roster bonuses built into the final two years of the season, a good indicator that the player/agent will look to extend out of this contract again prior to the 2030 season (or pressure on the Bills to get out of the deal early if things are going in that direction).
The deal includes VERY aggressive cash flow, and a bit more room to maneuver than the majority of blockbuster deals we’ve seen in the past.
The Cash Flow
Historic. Allen secured $220M over the next 4 seasons, $1M more than Dak Prescott locked down with Dallas last summer, and $90M more than Allen was previously scheduled to earn on his prior contract.
He’ll see $58M in 2025, $113MM through year 2 (2nd all-time to Prescott), and $166M through year 3 (2nd all-time to Prescott).
6-Year Cash Flow
2025: $58M
2026: $55M
2027: $53M
2028: $54M
2029: $52.5M
2030: $57.5M
For a little clarity, yes, Josh Allen’s $55M APY ties him for 2nd with Joe Burrow, Jordan Love, & Trevor Lawrence. But these players were extending out of a rookie contract to secure that number - which means there were previous years and cash built into that new deal. Burrow’s 4-year cash APY is $45.4M. For Love it’s $46.5M, and for Lawrence it’s only $38.8M.
Allen’s $220M through 2028 means he’ll earn a true $55M per year over that span.
The Guarantee Structure
$147M of the $330M total is guaranteed at signing, comprised of:
Signing Bonus: $56.745M
2025 Salary: $1.255M
2026 Salary/Bonus: $54.5M
2026 Salary: $34.5M
It’s the second most guaranteed signing in NFL history, behind only Deshaun Watson’s $230M. However, if we compare this number to the total value of the contract, Allen slips down the list quite a bit:
% of Contract Guaranteed at Signing
| 1 | Deshaun Watson | 100.00% |
| 2 | Dak Prescott | 53.75% |
| 3 | Jared Goff | 53.59% |
| 4 | Joe Burrow | 53.28% |
| 5 | Lamar Jackson | 51.92% |
| 6 | Trevor Lawrence | 51.64% |
| 7 | Justin Herbert | 50.95% |
| 8 | Jordan Love | 45.82% |
| 9 | Kyler Murray | 44.82% |
| 10 | Josh Allen | 44.55% |
In total, $250M of this $330M contract is guaranteed, as $18M of 2027 salary locks in next March, $53.5M of 2028 salary locks in March of 2027, $14M of 2029 salary locks in March of 2028, and a final $17.5M becomes fully guaranteed in March of 2029. The $250M total guarantee is the most in NFL history, soaring past Dak Prescott’s $231M previous high mark.
The Salary Cap Flow
Here’s where things get a little tricky. Generally speaking, a huge contract with 4 prorated bonuses offers the team a substantial amount of salary cap relief early on. The Bills chose not to go this route - at least initially. What does that mean?
Out of the gate, some of these initial cap figures look daunting, if not downright terrifying. However, Allen’s $41.3M cap hit this year represents less than 15% of the league salary cap. That balloons to over 20% next year based on projections, but then decreases nicely through 2028. Even small salary conversion adjustments over the next 3 offseasons will keep Allen’s cap hit in the teens in terms of percentages, which should allow Buffalo the opportunity to continue to build and grow appropriately.
2025 - $41,335,281
Allen receives a $56.745M signing bonus that spreads out over 5 years, and a veteran minimum $1.255M base salary. Everything about this year is as minimized as possible for salary cap purposes. Allen’s cap hit for the upcoming season stands at $41.3M, which represents $3.9M of savings from his previous contract.
2026- $61,388,000
There’s a $38M option bonus available that when exercised will spread out over 5 years for cap purposes, but Allen is also due a $16.5M base salary in 2026. This is $15.2M more than the veteran minimum next season ($1.3M). If Buffalo processes a simple salary conversion next March, they can lower the cap hit down to $49.3M, saving over $12M of room.
Now you get the picture. After 2025, Josh Allen has base salaries that are significantly higher than the minimum for that particular season, giving Buffalo room/option to maneuver a little bit as needed.
Base Salary vs. Minimum Salary
| SEASON | BASE SALARY | MIN. SALARY | POSSIBLE SAVINGS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $16,500,000 | $1,300,000 | $12,160,000 |
| 2027 | $14,000,000 | $1,345,000 | $10,124,000 |
| 2028 | $18,500,000 | $1,390,000 | $13,688,000 |
| 2029 | $17,000,000 | $1,435,000 | $12,452,000 |
| 2030 | $27,000,000 | $1,480,000 | $20,416,000 |
The Practical Outcome
Assuming Allen and the Bills are still in a good place a few years down the road here, the logical time to start looking sideways at this contract will be the 2029 year, which currently boasts an $86.15M cap figure. That number is likely to increase with a cap conversion or two over the next few offseasons, likely making it an untenable cap hit to enter March with.
Will Buffalo be comfortable processing another conversion that late into the contract? Or will it make more sense to bail out on the final two years of this contract and freshen Allen’s pot a bit?
If Allen is still an MVP-caliber quarterback, the Bills will most likely be motivated to start over again prior to the 2029 season. If there’s even a sliver of doubt with their multi-year future, I think it stands to reason that this contract is allowed to play out through 2029 (5 years, $272.5M), after which an extension can be negotiated.
Here’s what we know for sure: Allen will be earning (at least) $220M over the course of the next 4 seasons (TBD incentives are available as well) - more than any NFL player has ever earned over a 4-year span. So while he may have left a few million per year (the math says around $7M) on the table, the structure of this contract certainly benefits him where it counts most - cash in hand.
