How Much Do NFL Personnel Make Compared to Patrick Mahomes?

10+ Year NFL Contracts

• Brett Favre (2001): 10-year, $100 million
• Drew Bledsoe (2001): 10-year, $103 million
• Donovan McNabb (2002): 12-year, $115 million
• Daunte Culpepper (2003): 10-year, $102 million
• Michael Vick (2004): 10-year, $130 million
• Patrick Mahomes (2020): 10-year, $450 million

• Salary per Minute: $360.58
• Salary per Hour: $21,634.62
• Salary per Day: $173,076.92
• Salary per Week: $865,384.62
• Salary per Month: $3,750,000

These calculations are based on 260 working days per year, 8 hours per day.

• • Average Annual Salary: $7 million

NFL head coaches are among the highest-paid employees in the NFL. In April 2024, Chiefs’ head coach Andy Reid joined Mahomes as a record-breaker in terms of pay.

Reid signed a contract extension reportedly worth over $15 million per season to make him the highest-paid coach in the NFL. That hasn’t changed this year, as Reid will remain the highest-paid head coach in 2025.

Note that the NFL head coach salaries are not publicly disclosed, but we can make some assumptions based on available figures.  In 2023, the average salary for an NFL head coach was estimated to be $6.6 million. With Reid’s new contract and Jim Harbaugh inking a $16 million contract, we can estimate that roughly $7 million is the average head coach salary now.

Although this eclipses the average NFL salary, it doesn’t compete with Mahomes’ $45 million. In fact, it would take an average of 6.43 head coaches on $7 million deals to equal the KC QB’s paycheck.

Still, Mahomes is far off the wealthiest NFL owners in net worth!

• • Average Annual Salary: $1 million

NFL teams employ multiple coaching assistants to work under the head coach. For instance, there are position coaches, often with their own assistants. There are also strength and conditioning coaches, special teams coaches, quality control coaches, and more.

The assistant coaches immediately underneath the head coach are the offensive and defensive coordinators. They are also the highest-paid assistants, with an average salary of $1 million per year, according to NBC Sports.

For the purposes of this analysis, we are using the average pay for offensive and defensive coordinators. Establishing the pay rate for other assistants can be difficult to quantify in the absence of reliable statistics. Salaries can vary greatly between roles and teams.

Regardless, there isn’t an NFL assistant that compares to Mahomes’ salary. An average of 45 offensive/defensive coordinators at $1 million per year are required to match Mahomes’ $45 million.

• • Average Annual Salary: $205,000

During the 2012 NFL referee lockout, inexperienced officials called games for the first month of the season. The ensuing chaos resulted in NFL referees having the upper hand in negotiations.

At the crux of the issue was increased pay for officials. Today, according to Money Digest, they are paid an average of $205,000 per year, before bonuses, as part-time employees.

Head referees and officials with more seniority are paid higher salaries, so the pay can eclipse well over $205,000 for some employees. At an average of $205,000, though, it would take 220 referees to equal Mahomes’ annual salary!

• • Average Annual Salary: $22,500

Over the last five years, poor treatment of NFL cheerleaders by their employers, including wage theft, harassment, and unsafe working conditions, has been widely discussed in the media. As of 2020, 10 NFL teams had lawsuits filed against them.

How does the pay for NFL cheerleaders look in 2025? It largely depends on which team they work for. High-profile cheerleading squads, such as the Dallas Cowboys, can make an average of $75,000 per year.

Thanks to the success of Netflix’s America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, they recently received a tidy pay bump.

In 2019, the Cowboys’ cheerleader pay increased from $200 to $400 per game. With a 400% pay raise, they are making $1,600 per game over nine matchups in 2025.

However, the majority of NFL cheerleaders’ pay doesn’t come close to the Cowboys. The average NFL cheerleader’s salary is roughly $150 per game, plus pay for public appearances and practices. This equals $22,500 per year on average for NFL cheerleading.

If you want to compare the Cowboys’ cheerleader’s pay to Mahomes, then 600 of them add up to his contract. However, on average, you’ll need to find 2,000 cheerleaders to meet Mahomes’ lucrative deal!

• • Average Annual Salary: $60,000

In addition to cheerleaders, NFL mascots are gameday personnel designed to entertain the crowd in attendance. Like cheerleaders, the pay for NFL mascots varies based on their team.

For the 2023-24 season, the Cowboys’ Rowdy and Patriots’ Pat Patriot earned the most in the league at $50 an hour and $65,000 per season. The lower-earning mascots made about $50,000 for their services.

On average, NFL mascots make roughly $60,000 in yearly salary. In other words, we would have to stuff 750 mascots in a room to match what the Chiefs are paying Mahomes!

• • Average Annual Salary: $53,000

Waterboys and girls play an integral role in attending to the needs of players on game days and practices. They are there during the dog days of summer to keep players hydrated during training camp.

Additionally, the waterboys have other responsibilities on the team, including taping player’s ankles and assisting with other treatment plans. According to former NFL player Jake Thieneman, many waterboys have athletic training degrees and have more responsibilities than distributing water bottles.

Thieneman also notes that waterboys rake in roughly $53,000 per year. The job is often used as a springboard to advance in their careers. On average, waterboys collected $53,000 per year, which means that 849 of them would equal Mahomes’ $45 million annual salary.

• • Average Annual Salary: $42,345

For passionate football fans who enjoy photography, being an NFL photographer is likely considered a dream job. Is it a lucrative job, though? How does an NFL photographer’s salary look against Mahomes’ insane payday?

According to ZipRecruiter, as of July 15, 2025, the average hourly salary for an NFL photographer is $20.36 an hour. The salary range can range from as high as $37.02 to as low as $9.62 per hour in 2025.

The national average is $42,345, with salaries eclipsing $50,000 in some states.  Photographers in California earn the most before taxes, with salaries reaching roughly $53,000 per year. This translates to $20 to $25 an hour for NFL photographers.

At $42,345 per year, a whopping 1,063 photographers are needed to match Mahomes’ $45 million salary!

• • Average Annual Salary: $45,002

Scouts work diligently to find the next superstars in the NFL. They are responsible for attending games, watching game tapes, and writing reports on football prospects.

How much are NFL scouts paid for their time? The salary for an NFL scout can vary greatly based on experience and talent. The very best can make a good living as a scout, but minimal pay is the norm for entry-level prospect evaluators.

Per Salary.com, as of July 1, 2025, NFL scouts earn a median of $45,002 at $22.00 an hour. On the low end, scouts can be paid in the $20,000s, while senior NFL scouts can make over $90,000.

Scouting directors earn well over $100,000, but management is not included in this calculation. NFL scouts are required to work up the ladder and make a name for themselves to earn big bucks!

With Mahomes making $45 million a season, a total of 992 NFL scouts match No. 15’s incredible pay.