- NFL
That Duke education is doing WORK.
by James DatorMar 11, 2026, 6:08 PM UTC
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - OCTOBER 5: Daniel Jones #17 of the Indianapolis Colts smiles during warm-ups before an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Lucas Oil Stadium on October 5, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images) Getty ImagesWatch out Kirk Cousins, because a new king is coming for your bag-getting throne. On Wednesday, Daniel Jones agreed to a two-year, $88M contract extension with the Indianapolis Colts, which could pay him $100M if he hits performance incentives over the length of the deal. It’s a legendary short-term move that capitalized on the Colts quarterback desperation and translated that into a boatload of money for the quarterback.
At 28-years-old Daniel Jones has now entered his fourth NFL contract. By 2028 when the deal is done he will have $208M in career earnings, and only be 30-years-old — making it possible he could easily sign one, if not two more large contracts before calling it a career. Punctuated brilliance has been the story behind Jones, who has never been bad enough to get pushed back on a depth chart — and never good enough to commit to long term. This has had the effect of Jones constantly hitting free agency when a salary cap jump occurs, lifting his earnings to the stratosphere.
For comparison, Patrick Mahomes currently has $232M in career earnings, and will have $337M by the time Jones’ deal with the Colts is up — but crucially, most of the money Pat made was loaded earlier into the deal. After 2027 his yearly salary plummets to around $27M. This means that Jones could catch or pass Mahomes if he gets another large contract in 2028.
While it was a different era, Peyton Manning had career earnings of $171M with the Indianapolis Colts from 1998-2011. In three years Jones will have made a minimum of $102M with the Colts, and possibly $112M. He could pass Manning’s franchise earnings in just four years of playing time.
Kirk Cousins remains the NFL’s GOAT when it comes to securing the bag, but much of that money came later in his career. By age 30 Cousins had only made $72.6M — putting Jones over $30M ahead of him.
A good quarterback, but a legendary financial analyst, Daniel Jones has put that Duke education to work in order to always work smarter, not harder. He is now 92nd on the NFL’s all-time list of career earners, and he reasonably has another decade in football. Incredible work.
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