Who will be the first NFL cornerback to earn $25 million per season?

Shortly before Week 1 of the NFL season, the defensive back market received a reset, as Denver gave Patrick Surtain II a four-year, $96 million extension. Then Jalen Ramsey used that deal as a springboard, signing a three-year deal worth $24.1 million per season with the Miami Dolphins.

Those are notable jumps over the previous largest cornerback contract, held by Green Bay's Jaire Alexander at a $21 million average annual value (four years, $84 million). The largest deal for any defensive back prior was the $21.25M deal Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr. signed earlier this offseason.

Barring an unforeseen turn of events during the season, the contracts of Surtain and Ramsey will stand as the largest CB deals until after Super Bowl LIX in February.

At that point, free agency will be on the horizon, giving next year's crop of elite defensive backs the first chance at cracking the $25M annual salary ceiling.

Looking ahead to next year's free-agent class, several talented cornerbacks are listed as CB1 on their respective team's depth charts, but none of them are a threat to bump Ramsey from the CB contract mountaintop.

• CB Asante Samuel Jr., Los Angeles Chargers, age 25 in March 2025
• CB Paulson Adebo, New Orleans Saints, age 25 in March 2025
• CB Charvarius Ward, San Francisco 49ers, age 28 in March 2025

So, if someone is going to surpass Ramsey's deal by this time next year, it'll likely come down to a cornerback who is extension-eligible next offseason.

It just so happens that two of the premier receiver-erasers in the league, Sauce Gardner of the New York Jets and Trent McDuffie of the Kansas City Chiefs, will be up for new contracts starting in March. 

As first-round picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, both have fifth-year options that will certainly be picked up after this season, though that won't preclude them from demanding a market-setting extension.

McDuffie has had more team success (by a wide margin) in his limited time in the league, winning two Super Bowls in two seasons. However, he's also had the benefit of playing all over the formation, from the slot (against smaller receivers) to the boundary opposite L'Jarius Sneed, who's now with the Tennessee Titans.

A first-team All-Pro last season, McDuffie is one of the elite defenders in the NFL. However, there's little evidence to claim he's the best of the best, and the Chiefs can easily wait out his fifth-year option before deciding to extend him.

Gardner, meanwhile, exists in a class of his own. He's the best thing since "Revis Island" — Pro Football Hall of Famer Darrelle Revis — both at the cornerback position and for the Jets. New York must pay him commensurate with his talent eventually. 

According to Pro Football Focus, among 142 qualifying cornerbacks since entering the league in 2022, Gardner ranks first in passer rating allowed (63), yards allowed per coverage snap (0.53) and percent of targets that have resulted in a first down or touchdown (21.8 percent).

This could devolve into a holding pattern between the two All-Pros as they wait for each other to see who sets the benchmark the other must clear on their next contract. However, Gardner is somewhat impervious to what's happening in the rest of the cornerback market because of how good he is relative to his peers.

In other words, McDuffie will likely earn $25 million per season on his next deal because that's what the market dictates an elite cornerback should get. Gardner will get that much (or more) because his talent and level of play dictate that he deserves it.

Expect the Jets to recognize that fact quickly next offseason. They'll capitulate eventually and hand Gardner a market-setting contract that even McDuffie will have a difficult time surpassing.