It wasn’t long ago that we were talking about Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes signing the richest sports contract in history. Now, he’s not even in the top 5 in per year average for the quarterback position in the NFL. That could soon change, but his status as one of the wealthiest athletes in all of sports hasn’t much.
Forbes recently unveiled its annual measure of the world’s highest-paid athletes. They say they tracked income collected by athletes for a full calendar year based on conversations with insiders including DODICI Sports Management’s Mariano Trasande. They also used salary databases such as Spotrac and Capology to track on-field earnings. Off-field earnings include an estimate of sponsorship deals, appearance fees, memorabilia, licensing income and cash returns on business investments.
Mahomes came in at No. 24 on their list, earning $59.3M from May 1 of 2022 through May 1 of 2023. $39.3M was earned on the gridiron, while another $20 million was earned via endorsements. Here are some notes they had on Mahomes and those earnings:
Mahomes made his third Super Bowl appearance in four years in February 2023, claiming his second title and his second Super Bowl MVP Award.
The success has helped the five-time Pro Bowler build up a substantial endorsement portfolio. Among NFL players, only Tom Brady has made more in recent years.
In July 2020, Mahomes signed a ten-year contract extension with the Chiefs worth up to $503 million.
Among NFL players only Kyler Murray (19, $70.5M) and Russell Wilson (12, $85M) earned more than Mahomes in the period that Forbes measured. Mahomes had significantly more in off-the-field earnings than both Murray ($3.5M) and Wilson ($13M).
