Linebacker Devin White was able to double-dip on playoff money due to his four-game stint with the Philadelphia Eagles at the start of the 2024 season. He made $109,000 because the Houston Texans advanced to the AFC divisional round. White collected an additional $124,000 after Philadelphia won Super Bowl LIX.
Compensation in the playoffs is much different than during the regular season. A majority of players take a sizable pay cut in the postseason because their salaries have no bearing on what they earn during the playoffs. Playoff money comes from a league pool instead of NFL teams. There is a specific amount for each playoff round, with each eligible player paid the same.
Pay scale
| Round | Player Payout |
|---|---|
| Wild card round — other wild cards | $53,500 |
| Wild card round — wild card byes | $53,500 |
| Wild card round – division winners | $58,500 |
| Divisional playoff game | $58,500 |
| Conference championship game | $81,000 |
| Super Bowl — losing team | $103,000 |
| Super Bowl — winning Team | $178,000 |
Players earn their base salary over the course of the 18-week regular season. For example, Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, a 2025 first-team All-Pro, earned $888,889 per week from his $16 million base salary during the regular season. He made $53,500 for Los Angeles’ wild-card playoff win over the Carolina Panthers, as did wide receiver Puka Nacua, a fellow 2025 first-team All-Pro, and the rest of their Rams teammates. For Nacua, the $58,500 he earned in the Rams’ divisional playoff game represented a slight raise from his regular pay. Nacua earned $57,222 each week of the regular season from his $1.03 million base salary.
The maximum a player can make in this season’s playoffs from his current team is $376,000. To reach that total, the Super Bowl winner would have to be a division winner that participated in the wild card round. The only such teams remaining are the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots. It is $5,000 less for the other playoff participants. The remaining playoff teams whose players could make $371,000 are the Buffalo Bills, Denver Broncos, Houston Texans, Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.
For a player like Texans long snapper Austin Brinkman, winning the Super Bowl would be more meaningful financially than for most of his teammates. Brinkman earned $850,000 in 2025 from his NFL contract. An additional $371,000 would amount to nearly 45% of what Brinkman earned playing football in 2025.
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Payment eligibility
Players on the 53-man roster and injured reserve at game time receive payment for wild card and divisional playoff games.
Practice squad players continue to get paid at their weekly rate for as long as their respective teams remain in the playoffs. That is $13,000 per week for most practice squad players. Longtime veterans make between $17,500 and $22,000 per week.
Teams are allowed to expand the 53-man roster to 54 or 55 players by elevating up to two practice squad players for each regular-season or postseason game. The elevated players get paid like those on the 53-man roster and injured reserve for the first two playoff rounds.
Nine-year veteran linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin collected $58,500 for the Bears’ win over the Green Bay Packers to advance to the divisional round instead of $17,500 because he was elevated for the wild card game. He does not have to worry about that again after being signed to the 53-man roster to replace linebacker T.J. Edwards, who was placed on injured reserve after fracturing his left fibula against the Packers.
Payment eligibility becomes more complicated for the conference championships and the Super Bowl. The payment requirements for those two playoff rounds are outlined below.
Full amount
- Players on the 53-man roster when the game is played who have been on the roster for at least three previous games (regular season or playoffs).
- Veterans (at least one year of service) placed on injured reserve during the regular season who are still under contract when the game is played.
- Vested veterans (four or more years of service) placed on injured reserve during the preseason who are still under contract when the game is played.
- Players who are not on the 53-man roster at game time who spent at least eight games on the roster (regular season or playoffs), provided they are not under contract to another team in the same conference.
The 49ers have perennial Pro Bowlers edge rusher Nick Bosa, tight end George Kittle and linebacker Fred Warner who are among the players eligible for payment through the second category. Warner could be activated from injured reserve for the NFC Championship Game if the 49ers beat the Seahawks in the divisional round.
49ers edge rusher Keion White has the potential to double-dip in playoff money because of the last category. He is assured of $112,000 because the 49ers beat the Eagles in an NFC wild card game. White is entitled to a full share starting in the conference championship from the eight games he played with the Patriots before being traded to the 49ers, assuming New England gets that far. With both teams playing in the Super Bowl, White would get both the winners’ and losers’ shares for a total of $281,000. Thanks to the last category, the most White can make during this postseason is $555,000. That would require a 49ers-Patriots Super Bowl LX matchup.
Cornerback Shaquill Griffin, who is currently on the Seahawks’ practice squad, has a different quirky situation because of the last category. Griffin has been on Seattle’s 53-man roster for eight games this season.
Griffin would make $22,000 more than Seattle players on the 53-man roster for the final two playoff rounds because he would also get practice squad pay as long as he is not elevated for either of those games. For example, Griffin would get $103,000 for the NFC Championship game provided he is not promoted to the 53-man roster, while quarterback Sam Darnold, Seattle’s highest-paid player, would make $81,000.
Half amount
- Players on the 53-man roster when the game is played who have been on the roster for fewer than three previous games (regular season or playoffs).
- First-year players placed on injured reserve during the regular season who are still under contract when the game is played and signed a player contract or practice squad contract in a prior season.
- Non-vested veterans (one to three years of service) placed on injured reserve during the preseason who are still under contract when the game is played.
- Players who are not on the 53-man roster at game time who spent between three and seven games on the roster (regular season or playoffs), provided they are not under contract to another team in the same conference.
Bears safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson is in the same position White was in last season. He was released by the Texans three games into the regular season. Gardner-Johnson will receive no less than $117,000 in playoff money because of Chicago’s wild card win over Green Bay. He stands to collect an additional $129,500 if Houston wins the Super Bowl.
There is one more category that receives a one-quarter share for the conference championships and the Super Bowl: first-year players placed on injured reserve during the preseason who are still under contract when the game is played. They must also have been on a team’s practice squad for at least eight games in a prior season or received one or two game checks while on a team’s 53-man roster or injured reserve in a prior year to qualify for payment.
Payments during the playoffs must be made within 15 days after a game is played.