NFL All-Overpaid team: Zay Flowers, Deshaun Watson headline players with worst contracts

NFL All-Overpaid team: Zay Flowers, Deshaun Watson headline players with worst contracts originally appeared on The Sporting News .

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The NFL is all about value.

As a salary-capped league, front offices only have so much flexibility to work with each season. And while that salary cap has skyrocketed over the years, now at $301.2 million per team for the 2026 season, markets have been dictated by positional value. Superstar quarterbacks and pass rushers come at a premium, running backs have been seeing somewhat of a financial resurgence after years of struggles, while special teams players are usually given whatever is left over.

Like any sports league, however, there are some players who don't provide their franchises the kind of value their significant contracts would indicate, especially compared to their positional peers. Whether due to injuries, poor performance or off-the-field issues, an inflated contract can handicap an NFL team, and there are plenty of them across the league.

Here's a look at The Sporting News' All-Overpaid team entering the 2026 NFL season.

MORE: The NFL's highest-paid players for 2026

NFL All-Overpaid team 2026

Players were included based on full active contracts. All figures via Spotrac.

QB: Deshaun Watson, Browns

Current contract:  5 years, $230 million (signed in 2022)

2026 cap hit:  $40.96 million (5th among QBs)

Until Deshaun Watson proves that he can even stay on an NFL field, his contract will remain in these conversations. So far, it very well may be the most crippling contract an NFL team has ever given out. Watson has managed just 19 game appearances since signing his massive contract with the Browns in 2022, a stint in which Cleveland has been one of the league's worst teams.

The reason the Browns' everlasting quarterback carousel has continued, now giving Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel opportunities to establish themselves, is because of Watson's lack of availability. After signing $230 million in fully guaranteed money, Watson was suspended for 11 games in the 2022 season, received season-ending shoulder surgery midway through the 2023 season, and was last on an NFL field in 2024 before tearing his Achilles, which he re-tore in 2025.

Now, Watson looks aligned to become the Browns' starter once again, at least providing the team with some value from his contract. But it's unlikely he'll ever reach the heights he showed with the Texans . Watson's contract has essentially prevented the Browns from building out their vision for the team under first-year head coach Todd Monken.

QB: Brock Purdy, 49ers

Current contract:  5 years, $265 million (signed in 2025)

2026 cap hit:  $23.71 million (15th among QBs)

The 49ers did what they needed to do to keep Brock Purdy around for the long term, and rightfully so. He fits exactly what Kyle Shanahan's system requires from a passer: effective game-managing skills, a high football IQ and enough athleticism to run when there's room. But calling Purdy one of the best quarterbacks in football, which he is paid to be, is a reach.

Purdy's $265 million total contract value ranks fifth at his position, ahead of names like Justin Herbert ($262.2 million), Lamar Jackson ($260 million) and Dak Prescott ($240 million). For a player coming off an injury-riddled season, throwing for 20 touchdowns and 10 interceptions across nine games, Purdy's contract doesn't match the 49ers' massive commitment.

The best version of Purdy likely isn't going to reach "superstar" heights, even if he's able to keep San Francisco's well-oiled offensive machine rolling along each year. Purdy isn't "overpaid" because he's a bad quarterback in any fashion; he's just set to make a ton of money as a player who isn't the difference-maker within his offense.

MORE: Full list of NFL's highest-paid QBs for 2026

RB: Alvin Kamara, Saints

Current contract:  1 year, $6 million (re-negotiated from 2 years, $24.5 million)

2026 cap hit: $11.39 million (5th among RBs)

The Saints restructured Alvin Kamara's contract this past offseason, but his $11.39 million cap hit still doesn't align with his level of production at age 31. Kamara's contributions to New Orleans over the past decade should be celebrated, and he does have the pass-catching skills to be an effective weapon at times still, but for a player who averaged a career-low 3.6 yards per carry in 2025, the running back's last extension has hurt the Saints.

Kamara is also set to miss the first few weeks of the season with an MCL injury, another tough blow for the Saints' offense as rookie Jordyn Tyson also deals with injury issues.

Considering New Orleans just invested $47.4 million in a new running back this offseason, landing former Jaguars star Travis Etienne, Kamara's services as a starter are no longer needed. There's a reason he's popped up in trade rumors for a while now. Even his $6 million renegotiated salary, which is around the cap hit for J.K. Dobbins ($6 million) and James Cook ($5.8 million) this season, may be pricey.

RB: Chuba Hubbard, Panthers

Current contract: 4 years, $33.2 million (signed in 2024)

2026 cap hit:  $7.48 million (15th among RBs)

When the Panthers gave around $33 million to Chuba Hubbard in 2024, it was a time when he appeared to be the team's running back of the future. Hubbard totaled 1,195 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in the 2024 season, one of the most effective ground weapons in the league. Just two years later, the contract already isn't aging well.

Hubbard is entering a prove-it year in 2026 after allowing Rico Dowdle to take over co-starter duties in 2025. Hubbard took his 134 carries last season over 15 games for 511 yards and just one touchdown, a steep drop in production from hi...

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