Professional sports… and the NFL in particular is a high-stakes business.
Every year, really, every week there are millions of dollars at stake. And really—it goes beyond just the money… Reputation, legacy, all of it is at stake for NFL players.
But this year, there is a select group of players, who for one reason or another, are heading into the season with even more to lose than the average player.
Let’s take a look at the 10 NFL players with the most at stake in 2023!
Kristian Fulton
2023 is going to be a big season for the Tennessee Titans cornerback… He is rolling into the last year of his rookie deal and though he’s managed to show flashes of competence during the past few seasons, he hasn’t exactly been the pinnacle of consistency.
The only thing that’s truly saving him is that the Titans 2021 first-round pick, Caleb Farley, has been a massive bust thus far, having played just six games in two years as a pro.
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The Titans seem content with the status quo this year—having only signed one notable cornerback this offseason, Sean Murphy-Bunting to a low-cost, one-year deal…
But for all intents and purposes, this is going to be a make-it-or-break-it season for Fulton.
He needs to prove that he is a legitimate, high-end option in the defensive backfield—otherwise, he is risking millions of dollars next offseason and may even need to find himself a new employer!
Aaron Rodgers
At this point in his career—there is nothing that could happen that would prevent Aaron Rodgers from straight up walking into Canton after he retires.
The only thing that is holding him back from being a serious contender in the GOAT discussion is the fact that he shared a career timeline with Tom Brady, who won seven Super Bowls while Rodgers has snagged just the lone Lombardi Trophy in the 2010-2011 season.
But with four NFL MVPs, 10 Pro Bowls, five All-Pros, he’s clearly one of the most decorated players in NFL history. The crazy thing is that his tape lowkey still outshines his impressive resume.
With all of that said, 2023 is still a BIG year for Rodgers legacy-wise. It is his first year as a professional not wearing the Packers green and gold—and with the way that he left Green Bay—all of the attention this year is going to be on him and his new team, the New York Jets.
We all saw how much of a boost Brady’s epic Super Bowl run with the Bucs had on his already bulletproof legacy… If Rodgers can work some magic with the oft-downtrodden Jets, we may see the very same thing happen.
Especially because of the parallels that fans love to draw and observe between Rodgers and his predecessor in Green Bay, Brett Favre, who also joined the Jets after a long stint in Green Bay.
Conversely… if Rodgers goes out there and embarrasses himself—the media will have an absolute field day with him.
Everyone and their mother believes the Jets to be “a quarterback away” and now that they’ve gotten one… not to mention—one with a propensity for drawing the ire of the media and opposing fan bases—you best believe that the NFL world will let Rodgers have it if he can’t deliver!
And that could come with a huge price for Rodgers’ legacy!
Russell Wilson
2022 was not Russell Wilson’s year. Plain and simple.
He went into the year with sky-high expectations having been traded for a King’s Ransom to the Denver Broncos, who by all accounts had one of the best defenses in the league and were, as they say… “a quarterback away.”
Continuing with the clichés—it t turns out that was both famous last words and the kiss of death for Wilson and the Broncos, who had one of the most embarrassing seasons in recent history.
Everything that could go wrong, went wrong.
First-year head coach, Nathanial Hackett, put forth one of the worst exhibitions we’ve ever seen—and Wilson looked like a shell of his former self… So much so that the team five and 12 and dead last in the AFC West despite having one of the best defenses in the league.
The Broncos have already pulled the plug on Hackett as their head coach—and brought in Sean Payton, who is widely recognized as one of the best offensive head coaches in the game… Which means that the spotlight is now going to be firmly shining on Wilson.
If Russ can’t find a way to regain his former Super Bowl-winning form—or—at a minimum cut back on his mistakes, his career prospects could go downhill fast.
Needless to say, there is A LOT at stake for Wilson—and he is definitively among the short list of guys with the most to lose during the 2023 season.
Cordarrelle Paterson
During his 10-year career, Cordarrelle Paterson has proven himself to be one of the most useful players in recent memory.
He can return kicks, catch passes, and during his latest stint with the Atlanta Falcons, he was able to reinvent himself as a running back.
No small feat.
That said… Patterson is now 32 years old and though he may be a Swiss army knife of a player—right around that age is where athleticism starts to fade… and fast!
The Falcons seem to have recognized that too… They took University of Texas running back, Bijan Robinson, eighth overall in this year’s draft.
Granted, there are other roles that Paterson can slot into, but it seems that his days as one of the primary ball carriers in Hotlanta may have come to an end.
He will have to find a way to prove that he can still be a playmaker at his advanced age, otherwise, he may find himself without work after this season—and it could be curtains for Paterson’s NFL career.
Justin Herbert
Justin Herbert isn’t at risk of getting bounced out of the league… Nor is he even at risk of losing his job in Los Angeles… But it is high time that the former sixth-overall pick out of Oregon truly establishes himself as a franchise-changing quarterback…
Because to this point—he’s put up sick numbers and made some unbelievable throws, but he hasn’t really had the consistency that you’d expect out of him considering the way his name gets thrown around with Patrick Mahomes’ as well as some of the other top young QBs in the game.
Herbert also needs to find a way to exorcise some of his postseason demons.
The Chargers quarterback couldn’t even lead the team there during his first two years—and once he did make it to the Promised Land, he was involved, dare I say, accountable for one of the worst playoff collapses in NFL history.
Herbert’s Chargers were up 27 to 0 on the Jacksonville Jaguars—and they ended up losing by a final of 31 to 30… and Herbert’s 58.1% completion percentage, 273 yards and one touchdown, was a big reason why.
Now that he has inked that MASSIVE extension that carries an average annual value of $52.5 million per season and made him the highest-paid player in NFL history, the kid gloves simply have to be taken off when evaluating Herbert’s play.
If he doesn’t take that next step this season and really deliver for LA—the media is going to be absolutely ruthless with the 25-year-old.
Mekhi Becton
The Jets have officially pushed all of their chips into the center of the table with the acquisition of Aaron Rodgers.
Already having one of the most talented defensive units in the league, New York has made a number of big offseason moves to support the future Hall of Famer’s transition to New York, like acquiring his former running mate in Green Bay, Aaron Lazard, and key skill position players like Dalvin Cook.
The one big question mark heading into the season for them is the offensive line play… and A LOT of that hinges on whether the Jets former first-round pick, Mekhi Becton, can stay on the field and perform when he is on the field!
After all, the 6’ 7” lineman has played just 15 games since he broke into the league in 2020… Not exactly the kind of output you’d want from a guy you took 11th overall.
Now that the Jets have this tiny window to push for a Super Bowl, the training wheels are coming off for Becton… He has to step up to the plate otherwise he will be out of work in the blink of an eye!
Darnell Mooney
Along with Chase Claypool, Darnell Mooney is one of two big-named Chicago Bears wide receivers who is heading into a contract year.
Both Mooney and Claypool, last year’s big mid-season acquisition, are going to be looking to establish themselves as the clear number two option behind DJ Moore, the former Carolina Panthers standout receiver, who Chicago acquired as part of their epic trade out of the number one overall slot during this year’s draft.
Moore has averaged over 100 targets and 1,000 yards per season during his five-year career, so expect the lion share of Justin Field’s attention to be directed toward him.
That leaves Mooney and Claypool to duke it out for the scraps.
Mooney has shown plenty of explosiveness during his three years in the pros—particularly in 2021 when he topped 1000 yards for the first time in his career… But the consistency just hasn’t been there.
The speedy wide receiver needs to find a way to play alongside the aforementioned Moore and prove himself as the clear number 2 option over Claypool.
And if he doesn’t… he could be costing himself millions of dollars next offseason.
Dalvin Cook
With the exception of a couple of injury-plagued seasons to start his career, ever since Dalvin Cook broke into the NFL in 2017 out of Florida State he has been one of the most explosive running backs in the game.
He has gone for over 1100 yards in each of the last four seasons and averaged double-digit rushing touchdowns across that stretch of time, earning a trip to the Pro Bowl each year.
But now that he has jumped ship and forced his way out of Minnesota to join Aaron Rodgers and the new-look, New York Jets, the stakes have raised.
Cook is also going to be competing with the Jets second-year stud, Breece Hall a lot of the action in the New York backfield.
We all know how quickly things can fall apart for running backs these days… If Cook can’t reestablish himself as a bonafide playmaker for the Jets, he may find himself in career limbo sooner than he ever thought!
Trevon Diggs
The Dallas Cowboys defensive back, Trevon Diggs, is easily one of the most polarizing players in the game today… and it has been that way pretty much since 2020, when the Cowboys took him 51st overall in the Draft out of Alabama.
Diggs had a breakout year in 2021, when he led the NFL and tied a franchise record with 11 interceptions, marking the highest total since 1981.
The physical cornerback also managed to register 56 tackles and 21 passes defended…
With a stat line like that it isn’t a huge surprise that he was able to earn First Team All-Pro recognition… but what IS SURPIRSING is that despite that massive stat line, people can’t seem to agree on exactly how good Trevon Diggs actually is.
This is because Diggs has garnered a reputation being a little bit too much of a ball hawk at times—and maybe taking a couple too many miscalculated risks. He also gets targeted a pretty significant percentage of the time for a guy, who is supposed to be a top-of-the-line cornerback… Usually opposing quarterbacks avoid their side of the field like the plague, but that is far from the case with Diggs!
Now that he has signed that massive five-year and $97 million dollar extension with the Cowboys—that could balloon up to $104 mil with incentives, the pressure is really going to be on Trevon.
Other teams are going to be going after him to try and beat him for big plays—and if he can’t make the necessary adjustments, it could be big trouble for him and the Cowboys.
Saquon Barkley
Saquon Barkley was one of the hottest points of discussion this entire offseason… I mean, his contract dispute with the New York Giants basically sparked an entire labor relations debate.
Ultimately, Barkley had to bend the knee to management and accepted a one-year deal worth $11 million dollars, less than he was asking for.
This means that 2023 is a big year for Barkley. He has an opportunity to prove all of his doubters—his team’s ownership included—wrong.
But that opportunity is really a double-edged sword… Because if Barkley doesn’t put up numbers, the media will absolutely torch him…
And perhaps more concerningly for Barkley, the market for his services next offseason, when he is a free agent again, will tank.
Millions of dollars… reputation… media scrutiny—yeah! Safe to say that the New York Giants running back is heading into the 2023 season with A LOT to lose.
Which NFL player do you think has the most to lose in 2023? Did we miss anyone?
