With voting for the Pro Bowl in its prime, and a preliminary list of leaders from the fan votes released by the NFL, here is your annual guide toward how you, as a fan (or even players, if they just so happen to read this) can maximize your Pro Bowl vote to help top players in the league earn pay raises via mechanisms in the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement.
There are two situations in the CBA where an original ballot (not as an alternate) Pro Bowl honor could result in a raise in salary:
- Article 7, Section 4(e)(iv) creates a tier of Proven Performance Escalator that can raise the salary of a player drafted outside of the first round to the value of the 2nd round restricted free agent tender.
- Article 7, Section 7(g)(iii-iv) calls for fifth year options on first round rookie contracts to equate to the transition tag if named to a Pro Bowl once in their first three seasons, and to the franchise tag for two or three.
Here are some of the players that could see notable raises in their salaries should they earn an original ballot Pro Bowl, grouped by conference and position. All numbers used are OTC’s estimates for the fifth year options for the 2021 first round picks, and for the franchise, transition, and RFA tenders. To maximize strategic voting, prioritize on your ballot players from the 2021 rookie class, as this will be last time they are eligible for the following pay raises.
AFC Quarterback
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Trevor Lawrence | Fifth Year Option | $23,250,000 | $32,960,000 | $9,710,000 |
| CJ Stroud | Fifth Year Option | TBD | TBD | TBD |
It’s always daunting for any quarterback from the AFC to come away with a Pro Bowl, and Lawrence will also have to do so despite recently suffering a sprained ankle, but the base raise for the 5th year option that would be set is large as he seeks an extension. Despite getting the second most fan votes, it’ll be even harder for Stroud to do it as a rookie, and in any case, he’ll have two more chances to get the maximum raise in the future if he doesn’t get it now.
NFC Quarterback
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Brock Purdy | Proven Performance Escalator | TBD | TBD | $2.5M |
Purdy’s meteoric rise from Mr. Irrelevant to top tier quarterback will also see a meteoric rise in salary, and it would start here by locking in a much higher fourth year salary.
AFC Running Back
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Travis Etienne | Fifth Year Option | $6,345,000 | $10,688,000 | $4,343,000 |
Etienne hasn’t even achieved the playtime boost to his fifth year option due to missing his rookie season to injury. Getting named to the Pro Bowl would help get his fifth year option to a much more reasonable salary.
AFC Wide Receiver
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Jaylen Waddle | Fifth Year Option | $15,902,000 | $20,520,000 | $4,618,000 |
| Nico Collins | Proven Performance Escalator | $2,992,000 | $4,901,000 | $1,909,000 |
The (final) opportunity should be there for the taking for Waddle, who is having an outstanding season in Miami even in spite of playing next to Tyreek Hill. Collins is one of several receivers having a strong season in Houston upon the arrival of Stroud, and with the unfortunate injury to his teammate Tank Dell, Collins could avoid some vote splitting as a result.
NFC Wide Receiver
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Devonta Smith | Fifth Year Option | $15,902,000 | $20,520,000 | $4,618,000 |
| Amon-Ra St. Brown | Proven Performance Escalator | $3,242,000 | $4,901,000 | $1,695,000 |
| Chris Olave | Fifth Year Option | TBD | TBD | ~$5M-$8M |
Unlike Waddle, Smith might have a more difficult time getting named while playing alongside AJ Brown, but this is the last season he has a chance to get a boost to his fifth year option. It’s also the last season for St. Brown to be able to get that PPE boost, and he is in good position to do so having just crossed the 1,000 yard mark on a high flying Lions offense. Olave got over 1,000 receiving yards last season and is on pace to beat that number this season.
NFC Tight End
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Sam LaPorta | Proven Performance Escalator | TBD | TBD | $2.5M |
In his rookie season, LaPorta will have to fend off fellow Iowa alumni George Kittle and TJ Hockenson among NFC tight ends–he is third to them in yardage, but also had more receiving touchdowns than either of them.
AFC Tackle
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Rashawn Slater | Fifth Year Option | $20,877,000 | $22,976,000 | $2,099,000 |
Slater missed most of last season due to injury, but he has a chance to max out on his fifth year option raise with another Pro Bowl honor this season.
NFC Tackle
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Penei Sewell | Fifth Year Option | $17,157,000 | $20,877,000 | $3,720,000 |
| Christian Darrisaw | Fifth Year Option | $17,157,000 | $20,877,000 | $3,720,000 |
The offensive rise in Detroit should be recognized all across the roster, and Sewell, OTC’s highest valued tackle, would reap the financial benefit by getting a Pro Bowl honor. Darrisaw gets a repeat mention from last season with his OTC valuation also still very high.
AFC Guard
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Quinn Meinerz | Proven Performance Escalator | $3,242,000 | $4,901,000 | $1,695,000 |
| Trey Smith | Proven Performance Escalator | $3,242,000 | $4,901,000 | $1,695,000 |
Meinerz and Smith are guards in the AFC West that have been quietly putting together good careers, and boosts to their fourth year pay will be nice to work toward future extensions.
NFC Defensive End
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Aidan Hutchinson | Fifth Year Option | TBD | TBD | ~$7.5M-$10.5M |
Hutchinson should be poised to start working on getting those Pro Bowl bids in a bid to max out his fifth year option salary in Seasons 2 and 3.
NFC Outside Linebacker
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Kayvon Thibodeaux | Fifth Year Option | TBD | TBD | ~$7M-$10M |
Ironically, Thibodeaux might have a more difficult time getting name this season than Hutchinson due to playing on a struggling team, even though he has twice as many sacks thus far this season.
AFC Free Safety
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Kyle Hamilton | Fifth Year Option | TBD | TBD | ~$3.5M-$6M |
| Jevon Holland | Proven Performance Escalator | $3,242,000 | $4,901,000 | $1,695,000 |
Hamilton found himself on the top of the fan vote here, and getting a Pro Bowl bid now would help his cause toward maxing out his fifth year option potential. Holland runs under the radar a bit among plenty of talent on the Miami defense, but perhaps the fame that he got for pulling off turning a Hail Mary into a pick six will help his cause.
AFC Cornerback
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| Patrick Surtain II | Fifth Year Option | $16,803,000 | $19,475,000 | $2,672,000 |
| Sauce Gardner | Fifth Year Option | TBD | TBD | ~$3.5M |
Surtain and Gardner both earned their first Pro Bowl honors last season, but the work isn’t done for them yet, as they could max out their fifth year option raises by making the honors consecutive. The priority here should go to Surtain, as he is one season further in his rookie contract than Gardner, who will also have another chance in 2024.
NFC Cornerback
| Player | Salary Type | Current Salary | Potential Salary | Potential Raise |
| DaRon Bland | Proven Performance Escalator | TBD | TBD | ~$2.5M |
Bland leads the fan vote among this position and conference, and his league breaking number of pick sixes in one season should greatly help his cause.