Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson Is Paid Less Than His Two Backups

Russell Wilson is one of the NFL’s most popular, dynamic and successful young players. So, one would assume the Seattle Seahawks are paying their franchise quarterback the big bucks, right?

Not exactly.

NFL players can’t renegotiate their rookie contracts until after their third pro season, meaning Wilson’s salary is, for the time being, locked in at $662,434 per year.

Now, most of us would kill to make $600,000 per year, but for an NFL quarterback — especially a Super Bowl-winning one — that’s next to nothing. In fact, with the Seahawks’ recent acquisition of former Oakland Raiders signal-caller Terrelle Pryor, Wilson now is the third-highest-paid QB on his own team.

Pryor will make slightly more than Wilson ($705,000) this coming season, and fellow backup Tavaris Jackson is set to take home almost double ($1.25 million).

Wilson’s bevy of endorsement deals (Levi’s, EA Sports, etc.) likely keep his wallet sufficiently heavy, though, and — barring some sort of catastrophe — he has a huge payday coming his way in 2015.

Hat tip to For The Win