- Ventrell Miller headlines a pack of Jaguars: Miller owns the highest overall PFF grade among linebackers, while Parker Washington and Bhayshul Tuten have also made consistent contributions.
- DJ Reader looks like a steal: The new Giant is the league's top interior defender by overall PFF grade, dominating against both the pass and run.
- Christian Mahogany has been well worth his minimal contract: Despite owning a cap hit of slightly over $1 million this season, the third-year guard is one of the sport's best on an elite Lions offensive line.
For NFL teams to find broad success, they regularly need top-flight talent. In a majority of cases, that involves paying large sums of money to elite players — whether contract extensions for homegrown stars or top dollar to land big free agents.
However, the sharpest organizations around the league make their dividends by finding excellent contributors on cheap contracts. From players on rookie deals leading their positional packs to unsung veterans on unassuming deals elevating themselves, these types of margins often prove significant.
Through seven games of 2026, these 10 players have performed like they’re worthy of tens of millions of dollars. But in reality, their contracts are serious bargains relative to what they’ve been afforded.
Note: Players over a $10 million cap hit, in addition to rookies, were excluded from this exercise.
LB Ventrell Miller, Jacksonville Jaguars
2026 Cap Hit: $1.3 million
The highest-graded linebacker in football so far this year isn’t Fred Warner, Zack Baun or Jack Campbell. It’s Miller, who’s broken out in his first full season as a starter — placing as the highest-graded defensive player in the league.
A fourth-round pick in the final season of his rookie deal, Miller has been the centerpiece of Jacksonville’s stingy defense. His 89.1 PFF coverage grade is the best among qualified linebackers, while Miller’s 90.6 PFF run-defense grade trails only Warner.
If his play extends throughout the second half of 2026, the 27-year-old looms as a potential All-Pro and likely extension candidate for the Jaguars this offseason after letting Devin Lloyd walk last spring.
S Evan Williams, Green Bay Packers
2026 Cap Hit: $1.28 million
Williams has consistently been an above-average safety over his first two seasons, but he’s turned things up a notch in 2026. His 90.2 overall PFF grade leads his position, as do his 0.06 Wins Above Replacement.
Williams has been a top-tier run defender for two straight years, but his coverage has improved by leaps and bounds in 2026. The third-year pro has permitted only 76 yards across 278 coverage snaps, allowing a 44.7 passer rating into his coverage while snagging two interceptions and dropping other potential attempts.
The Packers have needed other names to step up on their defense without Micah Parsons and Edgerrin Cooper, and Williams has been a certified star. The 25-year-old could receive a top-of-market extension in due time if his play sustains.
C Zach Frazier, Pittsburgh Steelers
2026 Cap Hit: $2.06 million
The upper tier of NFL centers has long revolved around Creed Humphrey, Tyler Linderbaum and even Aaron Brewer last season. However, that upper crust now has to include Frazier.
The Steelers’ anchor places as the league’s highest-graded center at a 78.0 mark. In pass protection, Frazier has yielded only seven pressures while giving up zero sacks. He’s been even better in the run game, adding a 78.9 PFF run-blocking grade while regularly opening lanes and climbing to the second level.
Many thought Pittsburgh landed a future star in Frazier when it picked him in the second round two seasons ago. That time has now come, with Frazier powering one of the sport’s best offensive lines.
EDGE Cameron Thomas, Atlanta Falcons
2026 Cap Hit: $3.1 million
The season outlook for the Falcons was fairly dreary entering 2026, in large part due to a dearth of proven defensive talent. Yet newcomers like Thomas have put those concerns to bed.
The former Cardinal, Chief and Brown has found a home in Atlanta. His 76.6 PFF pass-rush grade is the 12th-highest among qualified edge defenders, while his 25 pressures are tied for 14th in that same group.
Consistency is key for Thomas, who has mustered only six pressures over his last three games after a red-hot start. Nevertheless, he’s provided Atlanta with excellent returns for a player signed to a cheap, one-year deal, catalyzing the league’s fourth-highest-graded defensive line on a motley unit.
QB Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers
2026 Cap Hit: $5.93 million
Heading into this season, the Panthers exercised the fifth-year option on Young but failed to reach a long-term contract extension. Now, Young is proving that he’s worth a substantial commitment.
Through the first seven games of the season, the former first overall pick owns the fourth-best overall PFF grade among qualified passers (82.4). Young has done an exceptional job taking care of the football, with his 1.1% turnover-worthy play rate the lowest in that contingent. On top of that, he’s made consistent plays under pressure, with his 62.2 overall grade under duress the sixth-best — all that despite facing the fifth-highest pressure rate (44.2%).
Getting Young into a rhythm has been a multi-year challenge, and his poor Week 7 showing against the Buccaneers reinforces that concept. Nevertheless, the 25-year-old is playing well above his pay grade among quarterbacks, establishing himself as a franchise starter in Carolina — and one who could command over $50 million annually this spring.
Dl DJ Reader, New York Giants
2026 Cap Hit: $4.5 million
In the aftermath of the Giants trading away star defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence, the team was left with a (literal) gaping hole up the middle of its defense. As it turns out, New York’s addition of Reader has been a ready answer.
Reader signed with the Giants in May on a two-year, $12.5 million contract but has played at a much loftier clip in 2026. More specifically, his 90.4 overall PFF grade is the best at the position — including a hair above Lawrence in second. Reader has only generated eight pressures but owns an elite 14.3% pass-rush win rate — the same as Jeffery Simmons this year — and his 12.6% run stop rate is also fifth.
A player that’s proven he can play strong football in past seasons, Reader isn’t quite as much of a hidden gem compared to others on this list. Nevertheless, the 32-year-old is proving to be a very shrewd maneuver for the first-place Giants.
WR Parker Washington, Jacksonville Jaguars
2026 Cap Hit: $3.72 million
The Jaguars’ offense has ranked among the NFL’s most efficient since the start of 2025. While Trevor Lawrence’s development has spearheaded the unit’s success, so too has the rise of Washington.
Washington has played at a terrific caliber this season, vaulting himself into an unquestionably high discussion at his position. His 82.6 PFF receiving grade is the 10th-best among qualified receivers, as is his 2.39 yards per route run. Not only is Washington a threat with the ball in his hands, averaging 4.8 yards after the catch per reception, but he’s elite against man or zone coverage — sitting in the top 13 in receiving grade when facing both schemes.
A sixth-round pick in 2023, Washington has gone from neat story to the clear WR1 on one of the NFL’s top offenses. His performance should come with a new contract in short order.
G Christian Mahogany, Detroit Lions
2026 Cap Hit: $1.11 million
Much of the Lions’ downfall in 2025 was due to an offensive line that didn’t meet its typical standard of excellence. Yet the unit has returned to form in 2026, with Mahogany playing a leading role.
Mahogany’s 82.5 overall PFF grade is the sixth-best among qualified guards. His 3% pressure rate surrendered is the 11th-lowest at his position, while his 9.6% positively graded play rate in the run game is second.
Mahogany’s career arc has been a sinuous one, featuring a tremendous start on a small sample size as a 2024 rookie to a middling 59.1 overall PFF grade as a full-time player in 2025. Now, the former sixth-round pick looks like a longtime cog in the NFL’s highest-graded offensive line, acting as another developmental success for Detroit.
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RB Bhayshul Tuten, Jacksonville Jaguars
2026 Cap Hit: $1.3 million
Akin to linebacker, running back was a position in which the Jaguars lacked clear-cut, reliable starters going into September. Tuten has answered the call and then some.
The second-year rusher has separated himself from a crowded Jacksonville committee, and for good reason. His 90.6 overall PFF grade is the best among running backs with 70 or more carries in 2026. Tuten has averaged an above-average 3.62 yards after contact per carry, and his 25 missed tackles forced tie for fifth.
In conjunction with Miller and Washington, the efforts of Tuten — a fourth-round pick in 2025 — help explain why the Jaguars have remained competitive this year despite suffering several personnel losses.
RB Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers
2026 Cap Hit: $7.03 million
Warren has long performed better than his contract has indicated. Even after a pay raise, he’s still transcending his financial value this season.
Warren’s 82.6 overall PFF grade is sixth among qualified running backs. He sits third in PFF rushing grade at an 88.9 mark, averaging a robust 3.68 yards after contact per carry and ripping off 11 explosive runs that tie for fifth. He’s also been a major weapon in the Steelers’ short pass game, averaging 1.79 yards per route run with an extra 14.8 yards after the catch per reception.
The Steelers entrusted Warren to be their starting running back when they awarded him a two-year, $11.9 million contract extension in September 2025. Even so, he’s playing far superior than a back that ranks 16th in cap hit and 27th in average annual value— including lower than teammate Rico Dowdle.
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