NFL players on the active roster are paid on a weekly or biweekly basis, but the checks are spread over a longer window than the regular season itself. Under the current collective bargaining agreement, a player signed for all 18 regular-season weeks receives equal installments across 36 weeks, running roughly from September into late May.1Over The Cap. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 26 – Section 5(b)(i) Training camp stipends, playoff shares, and contract bonuses arrive on their own separate schedules, so the actual pay frequency shifts through the calendar.
Regular Season Base Salary
The bulk of a player’s annual income is his Paragraph 5 (P5) base salary. For the 2021 through 2029 league years, which includes the 2026 season, the CBA pays that salary in equal installments over a period twice as long as the player’s weeks under contract.1Over The Cap. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 26 – Section 5(b)(i) A full-season player collects across 36 weeks. That structure was introduced in the 2020 CBA to give players steady income during months that used to be dry.
Each installment is the same size. Bye weeks do not interrupt the cycle: a player still gets paid the week his team is off. Whether the checks land weekly or biweekly depends on the team’s arrangement with the player.
The math for a rookie at the 2026 league minimum of $885,000 works out to about $24,583 per weekly installment, or roughly $49,167 biweekly, across the 36-week window. A seven-year veteran at the minimum of $1,300,000 sees about $36,111 per week. Those are gross figures before withholding.
The league still uses a “game check,” defined as one-eighteenth of base salary, as the reference number for fines and suspension forfeitures, even though the actual paychecks are smaller and more frequent than that figure suggests.2NFL Football Operations. Contract Language
How Practice Squad Players Are Paid
Practice squad players are on a different clock. They collect their full salary in equal weekly or biweekly installments during the regular season only, with no extension into the spring.1Over The Cap. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 26 – Section 5(b)(i) When the regular season ends, the checks stop unless the player is signed to an active roster for the playoffs.
For 2026, weekly practice squad pay depends on experience:
- Two or fewer accrued seasons: $13,750 per week
- Three or more accrued seasons: $18,350 to $22,850 per week, depending on the contract
The compressed schedule means practice squad players face a longer offseason stretch without pay than active-roster teammates.
Training Camp and Offseason Workouts
Before the regular season starts, players report to training camp in late July and are paid weekly stipends rather than any part of their base salary. For 2026, veterans earn $3,500 per week during camp and first-year players earn $2,000 per week.3NFLPA. Collective Bargaining Agreement March 15, 2020
Earlier in the offseason, voluntary workouts and organized team activities pay a per-diem. For the 2026 and 2027 league years, the daily rate is $340.4Over The Cap. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 21 A player has to participate in at least three of the four scheduled workouts in a given week to collect that week’s pay. Mandatory minicamps use a similar per-diem structure.
Playoff Pay
Base salary installments continue on their normal 36-week schedule regardless of whether the team makes the playoffs. Postseason play adds a separate layer of compensation from a league-wide pool, and every eligible player on a playoff roster earns the same flat amount per round. A rookie on the league minimum and a franchise quarterback on a $50 million average receive identical postseason checks.
For the 2025 season playoffs, the most recent completed cycle, per-player payouts by round were:
- Wild Card round: $53,500 to $58,500, depending on seeding
- Divisional round: $58,500
- Conference Championship: $81,000
- Super Bowl, winning team: $178,000
- Super Bowl, losing team: $103,000
A player on a division winner that runs through every round and takes the Super Bowl can earn up to $376,000 in postseason pay. The checks are processed shortly after each game. For most starters, the per-round amounts represent a pay cut relative to their regular-season per-game earnings.
Bonus Payments
Several kinds of bonuses create additional paydays outside the weekly installment cycle, each following its own timing.
Signing and Roster Bonuses
A signing bonus is usually the largest single payment a player receives. It is typically delivered as a lump sum or in installments within 30 days of the contract being finalized.2NFL Football Operations. Contract Language Roster bonuses are often tied to a specific calendar date, frequently the third day of the new league year in March. Because these bonuses land during the offseason, they can provide a cash infusion during months when base salary installments are winding down.
Workout and Performance Bonuses
Workout bonuses reward attendance at the team’s offseason conditioning program and are typically paid after the program wraps up in June. Performance incentives tied to statistical benchmarks or honors like a Pro Bowl selection are processed after the season ends. The league also runs a separate Performance-Based Pay pool that rewards players who outperformed the value of their contracts.5NFL Football Operations. 2024 Performance-Based Pay Distributions Announced Those distributions are announced in the following spring.
What Can Reduce or Stop a Paycheck
Several situations change either the size or the continuity of a player’s checks.
Suspensions
A suspended player, whether disciplined by the league or the team, forfeits one-eighteenth of his base salary for each game missed.2NFL Football Operations. Contract Language For a $10 million base salary, that is roughly $555,556 per game. The forfeiture uses the “game check” figure regardless of how the actual installments are structured.
Fines
On-field fines and other disciplinary penalties are deducted directly from a player’s regular paychecks. For the 2026 through 2030 league years, the standard deduction rate is $5,000 per pay period until the fine is cleared.6Over The Cap. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 42 Club Discipline If fewer pay periods remain than needed, the balance is divided across whatever checks are left. Fines related to preseason camp absences can also be deducted from postseason pay and bonuses.
Injured Reserve
Players on injured reserve generally continue to receive base salary installments on the normal schedule. Many contracts, particularly those of younger or lower-paid players, include a “split” clause that reduces salary while the player is on IR, often by around 45 percent.
Release During the Season
When a player is cut during the season, regular paychecks stop immediately unless the contract includes guaranteed money. Veterans with at least four credited seasons who are released after their team’s first regular-season game may qualify for Termination Pay, which covers the unpaid balance of the base salary for the year, minus any guaranteed amounts already owed. The claim can be filed between the end of the regular season and February 1. A player can generally collect Termination Pay only once in his career, though a second claim is allowed if the first payout covered six weeks or less of salary.7Over The Cap. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 30 Termination Pay
What Comes Out of Each Check
The gross figures shrink before the money hits a player’s account. On top of federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare, players face state and local income taxes in nearly every jurisdiction where they play, commonly called the “jock tax.” Teams withhold nonresident state taxes based on the days and games spent in each taxing state, and states use different formulas to calculate their share. Players based in states without income tax, like Florida and Texas, keep more of the home-game portion, though they still owe every other state where they play.
NFLPA union dues are deducted in equal installments from preseason and regular-season paychecks, starting with the first check after the initial preseason roster cutdown.8Over The Cap. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement Article 47 Players who hire certified agents typically pay a commission of up to 3 percent of contract value, with timing and method set by the agent’s agreement with the player rather than by league rules.