NFL teams love their quarterbacks. Sometimes, they love them a little too much—like that friend who refuses to break up with their high school sweetheart despite every red flag in the book.
Over the past two decades, teams have handed out massive extensions to QBs who absolutely did not deserve them. From panic moves to straight-up delusion, let’s rank the 11 worst quarterback extensions of the last 20 years.
11. Daniel Jones (New York Giants, 2023)
The Giants had a decision to make in 2023: pay Daniel Jones or let him walk. Instead of realizing that he was an average quarterback who had one fluky playoff win, they gave him four years, $160 million—essentially betting the franchise on him. One year later, Jones was injured, regressed, and the Giants were already looking for his replacement. Maybe next time, don’t hand out franchise-QB money to a guy with 60 career touchdowns and 40 fumbles?
10. Derek Carr (Las Vegas Raiders, 2022)
The Raiders gave Derek Carr a three-year, $121.5 million extension despite the fact that he had never won a playoff game in his career. Less than a year later, they benched him and kicked him to the curb. Talk about a short honeymoon phase. To make matters worse, Vegas structured the deal so they could cut him after one season—which is basically the NFL version of a “just kidding” contract.
9. Sam Bradford (St. Louis Rams, 2010)
This one stings because it wasn’t totally his fault. The Rams gave Sam Bradford a six-year, $78 million extension before he ever played an NFL snap (thanks, old rookie pay scale!). Then his knees turned into pudding, and St. Louis had to watch their franchise QB’s career collapse under the weight of guaranteed money and torn ACLs.
8. Ryan Fitzpatrick (Buffalo Bills, 2011)
Ah yes, Fitzmagic. The Bills fell under his spell in 2011 and gave him a six-year, $59 million extension after a hot start. That magic wore off real fast. Fitzpatrick turned back into a pumpkin, throwing 38 interceptions over the next two seasons before Buffalo realized their mistake and bailed. At least it wasn’t the last time he finessed an unsuspecting franchise.
7. Blake Bortles (Jacksonville Jaguars, 2018)
Blake Bortles had one (1) good season—2017, when the Jaguars’ defense carried him to the AFC Championship Game. Jacksonville took this as a sign that he was their guy and gave him a three-year, $54 million extension. One year later, they realized he absolutely was not their guy and cut him. Next time, maybe don’t reward a quarterback for handing the ball off to Leonard Fournette 30 times a game?
6. Nick Foles (Jacksonville Jaguars, 2019)
Jaguars, we need to talk. After getting burned by Bortles, Jacksonville immediately turned around and handed Nick Foles four years, $88 million to be their savior. He lasted four starts before Gardner Minshew stole his job. The Jags dumped his contract as soon as they could, proving that sometimes, franchises really do need adult supervision.
5. Matt Cassel (Kansas City Chiefs, 2009)
The Patriots pulled the classic “sell high” move with Matt Cassel, convincing the Chiefs that he was a franchise QB after one good season in New England. Kansas City took the bait, giving him a six-year, $63 million deal. Cassel rewarded them with years of mediocrity and an abysmal 19-28 record as a starter. Never trust Bill Belichick when he tells you a backup QB is the next big thing.
4. Jared Goff (Los Angeles Rams, 2019)
Jared Goff was fresh off a Super Bowl appearance (in which he put up three points), and somehow, the Rams decided that was worth a four-year, $134 million extension. The deal became an instant regret, and two years later, LA had to attach draft picks just to convince the Lions to take him. At least the Rams got Matthew Stafford and a Super Bowl out of it.
3. Joe Flacco (Baltimore Ravens, 2013)
Flacco bet on himself in 2012 and won, leading the Ravens to a Super Bowl victory. So Baltimore made him the highest-paid QB in NFL history at the time with a six-year, $120.6 million deal. The problem? Flacco was never elite. He went full “check down king” mode, and Baltimore quickly realized they’d just paid franchise-QB money to a guy who was “pretty good, I guess.”
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2. Carson Wentz (Philadelphia Eagles, 2019)
Wentz looked like an MVP in 2017… until his knee exploded. The Eagles ignored that and handed him a four-year, $128 million extension in 2019. By 2020, he had become a turnover machine, got benched for Jalen Hurts, and was promptly dumped on the Colts. Wentz somehow tricked two more teams into thinking he was fixable before the entire NFL realized that Philly had made a colossal mistake.
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1. Russell Wilson (Denver Broncos, 2022)
The Broncos gave Russell Wilson a five-year, $245 million extension before he even played a game for them. What followed was an absolute disaster: Russ cooked up one of the worst QB seasons in recent history, and Denver had to eat $85 million in dead cap just to get rid of him after two years. This extension didn’t just backfire—it nuked the entire franchise.
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