A Comparison Between NSFL vs. NFL Player Compensation Using The Franchise Tag Model
See also the second half of this article, where I compare the highest paid NSFL players to the highest paid NFL players (purely for fun).
With the rise and early successes of the XFL this spring, I want to take a look at where the NSFL fits within the landscape of professional gridiron football in North America. I hope to eventually make this a series of media articles on the subject. This week, I’ll be taking a look at how player compensation compares between the NSFL and the NFL.
*One note before I begin: NFL salary numbers were taken from Spotrac, a widely used database for North American professional sports contract information. NSFL numbers were taken from the NSFL Team Budgets spreadsheet, which is available on the NSFL Forums under the Transactions subforum. The information used in this article is based off of what was on Spotrac and the NSFL Team Budgets spreadsheet as of 3/11/2020. If you’re reading this after that date and things are not quite right, remember that football is a business and the numbers are changing every day.
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I’ve chosen the NFL as the comparison league for this article for two main reasons. On a basic level, the NFL is considered the top tier of competitive football; similarly, the NSFL can generally be considered the top tier of competitive simulation football. Looking at a more quantifiable similarity, the NFL’s allocation of cap per player also very closely matches the cap per player number of the NSFL. The NFL’s salary cap for 2019 was $188.2 million per team. With a 53 man roster on payroll against the cap, this gives NFL teams an average allocation of $3.5 million in cap space per player. The NSFL’s salary cap for S21 is $80 million per team. Based on the NSFL Team Budgets spreadsheet, NSFL teams have an average of 25 players counting against their cap on the roster (this includes OL bots, as from what I can tell they are counted against the team’s salary cap). This gives NSFL teams an average allocation of $3.2 million in cap space per player, a number that is very close to the NFL’s allocation of $3.5 million per player. We can see from this number that, on a per player basis, the roster is valued nearly the same in both the NFL and NSFL; the only difference between the two in terms of overall value is that NFL rosters have roughly double the number of players.
Let’s take a look at compensation at each position. With the NFL currently in it’s franchise tag window, I thought it would be cool to see what a franchise tag number for each position in the NSFL would be, and how it stacks up with the NFL counterpart. The NFL’s franchise tag number at each position is calculated each year as the average single year salary of the top 5 players at each position, based on the previous year’s salary. Since there’s only half the number of rostered players per team in the NSFL, I’ve cut the franchise tag players in half (rounded up); NSFL franchise tag numbers below were calculated using the average single year salary of the top 3 players at each position, based on their S21 salary. For easier comparison, I’ve taken it a step further and calculated each franchise tag number as a percentage of the team’s total salary cap. It’s not fair to compare direct dollar amounts between the two leagues due to the aforementioned discrepancy in roster sizes, but I think a cap percentage comparison is pretty fair when you consider that the cap-per-player numbers are very similar between the two leagues.
(If you want to see the actual individual salaries that were used to calculate the NSFL franchise tag numbers, see the second screenshot further down)
![[Image: K2MT3NP.png]](https://i.imgur.com/K2MT3NP.png)
Just from eyeballing the data, we can see that there is generally more parity between positions in the NSFL vs. positions in the NFL. The NFL has a pretty massive pay gap between the top tier quarterbacks and the rest of the positions, with quarterbacks commanding a franchise tag number more than 4% higher than the next highest position. To give you a sense of how large that 4% is, we’re talking about a difference of more than $4 million per year between quarterbacks and wide receivers, the next highest franchise tag position. Compare this to the NSFL, where the gap between ALL positions is only 6% total, or roughly $5 million per year. I’d argue that the NSFL is a more “fair” league when it comes to player compensation regardless of position. The gap between the highest paid position and the lowest paid position in the NFL is a whopping 11%; at the end of the day, a top tier NFL safety is never going to have a salary comparable to a top tier NFL quarterback or wide receiver. In the NSFL, however, players of any position could expect a competitive salary bump when compared with players from other positions if franchise tagged.
Looking closely at the cap percentages for each position, we can see a few interesting things happening. An interesting similarity to note is that running backs are de-valued in both leagues. Running backs are a risky investment at any level of football, and it shows here. Both leagues clearly value the passing game, as evidenced by the #2 ranking of NFL wide receivers and #1 ranking of their NSFL counterparts. However, there is a clear difference in the way that each league values its quarterbacks. Quarterbacks are far and away the most valued pieces of an NFL roster; in the NSFL, there are three other positions that GMs are valuing higher. If we look at the highest paid players in each league based on average pay per year, the discrepancy is even more clear. Imagine if I told you that the highest paid players in the NFL were a running back and a linebacker. You’d probably call me out instantly for being incorrect, because that probably hasn’t happened in the NFL since the 1960s (totally a shot in the dark). However, the NSFL’s two highest paid players are in fact Chicago Butchers running back Sean O’Leary ($24.3 million over 3 years) and San Jose Sabercats linebacker Tyron Brackenridge ($24 million over 3 years). In fact, there are 6 players at other positions in the NSFL that are paid a higher average annual salary than the highest paid quarterback. To contrast, in the NFL’s list of contracts by average pay per year, you’d have to go all the way down 12 spots before you’d find a non-quarterback (it’s OLB Khalil Mack of the Chicago Bears, if you’re curious).
The major question here is, why is there such a difference in the way quarterbacks are valued between the NFL and NSFL? Clearly, passing is important in both leagues. Pass catchers are valued similarly in both leagues, whether you’re looking at wide receivers (#2 and #1 in each league), tight ends (#9 and #8), or even running backs (#7 and #5). But the actual passers themselves are not valued even remotely the same. To leave the realm of numbers for a moment and speak purely on conjecture, I think it has to do with the overall pool of available average to above-average starting quarterbacks for each league. I believe that, as a whole, it’s easier to find a starting quarterback that will develop into a top-tier player in the NSFL than it is to do the same in the NFL. Additionally, I think that today’s NFL is a little bit more pass happy than the NSFL is, and a lot more of the offensive game plan is in the hands of an NFL quarterback as opposed to an NSFL quarterback.
![[Image: hNtgmUH.png]](https://i.imgur.com/hNtgmUH.png)
So, if we were to take your typical top-tier NSFL player and drop him/her into the NFL, where would they stand? In the table above, I’ve taken the average yearly salary of the highest paid NSFL player at each position, and found the NFL player with the average yearly salary that is closest or equal to the NSFL player’s salary. At quarterback, the highest paid NSFL player is essentially making middle-of-the-road backup level NFL salary. As stated above, quarterbacks are valued at a massive premium in the NFL, so this makes sense. At every other position, the highest paid NSFL player has an average yearly salary comparable to a mid level starter in the NFL. The only place (besides quarterback) where you could argue that this isn’t true, interestingly enough, is at running back; the highest paid running back in the NSFL (Sam Torenson, PHI) would be a top 10 running back in the NFL by average yearly salary. Torenson’s average yearly salary is comparable to Austin Ekeler, who just signed a new contract with the Los Angeles Chargers as their featured back. So, if you want to make NFL star player money in the NSFL, be a highly valued running back. Definitely DON’T be a quarterback.
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Just for fun and while we’re on the subject of player compensation, I thought it would be cool to compare the highest paid NSFL player at each position with the highest paid NFL player at the same position. This is mostly subjective and purely for the sake of starting conversations. Please feel free to agree or disagree with anything I state here.
QUARTERBACK:
NSFL - Rose Jenkins, Chicago Butchers
Total contract value: $16,000,000 over 4 years
S20: 328 yds/game, 28 TDs, 12 INTs, 85.2 passer rating
NFL - Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
Total contract value: $150,000,000 over 5 years
2019: 280 yds/game, 26 TDs, 14 INTs, 92.1 passer rating
Honestly, when I look at their last season stats, I would take Rose Jenkins over Matt Ryan. Jenkins threw two more TDs and was picked off only 12 times vs. 14 for Ryan. She also averages nearly 50 more yards per game. Ryan was a slightly more accurate passer, but the stats as a whole here are very comparable and it makes Jenkins seem like an absolute bargain compared to her NFL counterpart. It’s close, and you’d love to have either one, but I’d personally take Jenkins over Ryan. Jenkins looks to be a solid future investment while Ryan is probably entering the later stage of his career.
RUNNING BACK:
NSFL - Sam Torenson, Philadelphia Liberty
Total contract value: $18,000,000 over 3 years
S20: 103 yds/game, 4.1 yds/carry, 8 TDs, 208 rec yds, 0 rec TDs
NFL - Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys
Total contract value: $90,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 85 yds/game, 4.5 yds/carry, 12 TDs, 420 rec yds, 2 TDs
This is close. Sam Torenson is clearly a workhorse. Averaging more than 100 yards per game is no easy feat over a full season. That being said, Ezekiel Elliott found the endzone 6 more times than Torenson, and also adds more in the passing game. I’d give the edge to Elliott here because 6 TDs is a pretty large difference, and the passing game is all-important in today’s football landscape, but Torenson is no slouch either. There’s good reason why his per-year salary would be considered top 10 NFL RB money.
WIDE RECEIVER:
NSFL - Sean O’Leary, Chicago Butchers
Total contract value: $24,250,000 over 3 years
S20: 83 catches, 96 yds/game, 15.1 yds/catch, 9 TDs
NFL - Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints
Total contract value: $96,250,000 over 5 years
2019: 149 catches, 108 yds/game, 11.6 yds/catch, 9 TDs
There’s no contest here, but that’s no fault of Sean O’Leary. 83 catches and nearly 1300 yards receiving is a great season by any standard. You slot O’Leary into most NFL rosters with that production and he’d be a number 1 option. But last year, Michael Thomas had as close to an MVP season as any wide receiver we’ve seen in the last decade. 149 catches in one season while averaging more than 100 yards per game is absolutely insane. And that’s after a 125 catch, 1400 yard season in 2018. No other wide receiver in either league is responsible for such a large share of his team’s offensive touches and production. Thomas is worth every bit of the $96 million to the Saints, and I’d probably take him at that price too.
TIGHT END:
NSFL - Earl Sauce, Colorado Yeti
Total contract value: $10,500,000 over 3 years
S20: 56 catches, 34 yds/game, 7.9 yds/catch, 7 TDs
NFL - Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
Total contract value: $46,842,000 over 5 years
2019: 97 catches, 77 yds/game, 12.7 yds/catch, 5 TDs
The NSFL as a whole didn’t have a single tight end break 900 yards receiving in S20, so the statistical difference here may also be a matter of philosophy between the two leagues. Tight ends aren’t typically the first option in the NSFL. That being said, Travis Kelce has the stats of a number 1 wide receiver while playing tight end. He is extremely productive in the passing game. Sauce was the leader in TDs among all tight ends; he’s a solid red zone target for COL. One very important aspect that is hard to quantify here is blocking ability. I honestly can’t tell you how good of a blocker Earl Sauce is. I’m sure he’s solid. Overall though, Kelce is the preferred option here by a decent margin. Note: this is the only case among the four offensive skill positions where the highest paid NSFL player is not the statistical league leader at that position. Cameron Olsen (SJS) outperformed Sauce in every stat except for TDs (6 TDs).
OFFENSIVE LINE:
NSFL - Brave Ulysses, New Orleans Second Line
Total contract value: $6,000,000 over 2 years
S20: 59 pancakes, 0 sacks allowed, 1971 team rushing yards
NFL - Tyron Smith, Dallas Cowboys
Total contract value: $97,600,000 over 8 years
2019: ?? pancakes, 1 sack allowed, 2153 team rushing yards
Pancakes are not an official stat in the NFL, and the only website that keeps any record of pancakes is PFF (I’m not paying for PFF Premium just so I can see offensive line stats). Ulysses had an great season, allowing no sacks and blocking for NOLA on their way to the 3rd best rushing attack in the NSFL. Tyron Smith had a similarly great season, only allowing one sack and helping DAL’s 5th ranked rushing attack. Ulysses is probably a better value with an average yearly salary $9m less than Smith, but as we saw in the above analysis, offensive linemen are valued much higher in the NFL than they are in the NSFL. I’d bet that Ulysses would garner a similar salary to Smith if you dropped him on an NFL roster. You’d take either of these players on your line and trust that they’ll be solid in both pass protection and run blocking.
DEFENSIVE LINE:
NSFL - Thorian Skarsgard, Chicago Butchers
Total contract value: $22,000,000 over 3 years
S20: 7 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 42 tackles (0 for loss)
NFL - Aaron Donald, Los Angeles Rams
Total contract value: $135,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 12.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 48 tackles (20 for loss)
Newsflash: Aaron Donald is a pretty incredible football player. 12.5 sacks and 48 tackles with 20 of them for a loss while primarily playing at defensive tackle? Those stats look like what you’d expect from an edge rusher, but Donald is doing it from the inside. Let’s give credit where credit is due; Thorian Skarsgard is also playing primarily from the inside, and 7 sacks and 42 tackles are solid numbers for a defensive tackle. That being said, Skarsgard is not just the highest paid defensive lineman in the NSFL, he is the third highest paid player in the NSFL period. 7 sacks and 0 tackles for loss isn’t quite what you want to see from your biggest team investment. Donald’s value to the Rams defensive front can’t be overstated, and most coordinators would agree that you’d take him over pretty much any defensive tackle right now.
LINEBACKER:
NSFL - Tyron Brackenridge, San Jose Sabercats
Total contract value: $24,000,000 over 3 years
S20: 89 tackles (1 for loss), 1 forced fumble, 10 sacks, 1 INT, 13 passes defensed
NFL - Khalil Mack, Chicago Bears
Total contract value: $141,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 47 tackles (8 for loss), 5 forced fumbles, 8.5 sacks, 0 INT, 4 passes defensed
Yes, I’m aware that Mack probably plays DE just as much as he does LB. However, he has been listed as an OLB since moving to the Bears. That technically makes him the highest paid linebacker in the NFL. Mack was brought to the Bears primarily to rush the QB. In 2019, he posted his lowest sack total since his rookie season. He’s not great in pass defense, and if we’re listing him as a LB, then we’re going to factor pass defense into this. 8 tackles for loss is 7 more than his NSFL counterpart, Tyron Brackenridge, but Brackenridge was clearly the more productive player last year, with nearly double the amount of total tackles, double digit sacks, and 4 times as many passes defensed. Mack severely underplayed his contract last year; Brackenridge is the better value right now and would be a solid starter in the NFL based on his production last year.
CORNERBACK:
NSFL - AJ Lattimer, Orange County Otters
Total contract value: $20,000,000 over 4 years
S20: 3 INT (1 returned for TD), 15 passes defensed, 72 tackles
NFL - Xavien Howard, Miami Dolphins
Total contract value: $75,250,000 over 5 years
2019: 1 INT, 4 passes defensed, 17 tackles
Howard’s 2019 stats are obviously severely deflated, as he was only able to suit up for 5 games in 2019 for the Dolphins. He was a good starter for them during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, but I don’t think anybody is going to tell you that he was worth the massive contract extension that Miami signed him to prior to the 2019 season. On the other side, AJ Lattimer is a similarly good starter for the Otters, tying for 3rd in the league with 3 INTs in S20 and a solid 15 passes defensed. There were a number of corners in the NSFL, however, who had better statistical years. I’m going to go ahead and say that neither of these guys are worth being the HIGHEST paid cornerbacks in each league, but both are decent starting-caliber cornerbacks who can hold their own against most receivers. This is a toss up for me; I’d take either one.
SAFETY:
NSFL - Logan Uchiha, Baltimore Hawks
Total contract value: $18,000,000 over 2 years
S20: 88 tackles (2 for loss), 6 sacks, 1 INT, 10 passes defensed
NFL - Landon Collins, Washington Redskins
Total contract value: $84,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 117 tackles (9 for loss), 1 sack, 0 INT, 4 passes defensed
This is a tough comparison. From what I can tell, Uchiha actually played primarily at LB for the Hawks defense during S20. Collins, meanwhile, was one of the league’s best safeties from 2015-2017, but is currently experiencing a little bit of a downward slump with no picks since the end of the 2017 season. Uchiha’s stats paint a pretty well-rounded picture, with 6 sacks, 10 passes defensed, and a solid 88 tackles over 13 games. Collins was obviously still heavily involved with 117 tackles through 16 games, but his lack of production everywhere else isn’t what you’d expect from the highest paid safety in the NFL. It remains to be seen whether Uchiha will continue to be productive after moving to safety, but I would still take him over Collins at this point, because I don’t see an end to Collins’ slump anytime soon.
PLACEKICKER/PUNTER:
NSFL - Dougie Smalls, Yellowknife Wraiths
Total contract value: $9,000,000 over 3 years
S20 (with TIJ in DSFL): 18/20 XPs (90%), 19/21 FGs (90.5%), 50 yd longest
NFL - Harrison Butker, Kansas City Chiefs
Total contract value: $20,275,000 over 5 years
2019: 45/48 XPs (93.8%), 34/38 FGs (89.5%), 56 yd longest
There are those of you who may believe that any serviceable kicker is enough for a team. You may say that kickers are all the same. Let me remind everybody that Cody Parkey and the double doink were a thing. All kickers are NOT made the same. A consistently reliable kicker is an absolute asset for any team. That being said, both Dougie Smalls and Harrison Butker were among the most consistent kickers in their respective leagues. Smalls played S20 in the DSFL, where he ranked 2nd in field goal percentage. Harrison Butker ranked 1st in field goals made and 6th in field goal percentage in 2019. Both kickers have a pretty comparable average yearly salary ($3m/yr for Smalls and $4.05m/yr for Butker). Both are great values and I’d take either one. You could easily substitute one for the other in either league and you’d probably be fine. In this case, the highest paid kickers ARE the same, I guess.
WORD COUNT: 3532
See also the second half of this article, where I compare the highest paid NSFL players to the highest paid NFL players (purely for fun).
With the rise and early successes of the XFL this spring, I want to take a look at where the NSFL fits within the landscape of professional gridiron football in North America. I hope to eventually make this a series of media articles on the subject. This week, I’ll be taking a look at how player compensation compares between the NSFL and the NFL.
*One note before I begin: NFL salary numbers were taken from Spotrac, a widely used database for North American professional sports contract information. NSFL numbers were taken from the NSFL Team Budgets spreadsheet, which is available on the NSFL Forums under the Transactions subforum. The information used in this article is based off of what was on Spotrac and the NSFL Team Budgets spreadsheet as of 3/11/2020. If you’re reading this after that date and things are not quite right, remember that football is a business and the numbers are changing every day.
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I’ve chosen the NFL as the comparison league for this article for two main reasons. On a basic level, the NFL is considered the top tier of competitive football; similarly, the NSFL can generally be considered the top tier of competitive simulation football. Looking at a more quantifiable similarity, the NFL’s allocation of cap per player also very closely matches the cap per player number of the NSFL. The NFL’s salary cap for 2019 was $188.2 million per team. With a 53 man roster on payroll against the cap, this gives NFL teams an average allocation of $3.5 million in cap space per player. The NSFL’s salary cap for S21 is $80 million per team. Based on the NSFL Team Budgets spreadsheet, NSFL teams have an average of 25 players counting against their cap on the roster (this includes OL bots, as from what I can tell they are counted against the team’s salary cap). This gives NSFL teams an average allocation of $3.2 million in cap space per player, a number that is very close to the NFL’s allocation of $3.5 million per player. We can see from this number that, on a per player basis, the roster is valued nearly the same in both the NFL and NSFL; the only difference between the two in terms of overall value is that NFL rosters have roughly double the number of players.
Let’s take a look at compensation at each position. With the NFL currently in it’s franchise tag window, I thought it would be cool to see what a franchise tag number for each position in the NSFL would be, and how it stacks up with the NFL counterpart. The NFL’s franchise tag number at each position is calculated each year as the average single year salary of the top 5 players at each position, based on the previous year’s salary. Since there’s only half the number of rostered players per team in the NSFL, I’ve cut the franchise tag players in half (rounded up); NSFL franchise tag numbers below were calculated using the average single year salary of the top 3 players at each position, based on their S21 salary. For easier comparison, I’ve taken it a step further and calculated each franchise tag number as a percentage of the team’s total salary cap. It’s not fair to compare direct dollar amounts between the two leagues due to the aforementioned discrepancy in roster sizes, but I think a cap percentage comparison is pretty fair when you consider that the cap-per-player numbers are very similar between the two leagues.
(If you want to see the actual individual salaries that were used to calculate the NSFL franchise tag numbers, see the second screenshot further down)
Just from eyeballing the data, we can see that there is generally more parity between positions in the NSFL vs. positions in the NFL. The NFL has a pretty massive pay gap between the top tier quarterbacks and the rest of the positions, with quarterbacks commanding a franchise tag number more than 4% higher than the next highest position. To give you a sense of how large that 4% is, we’re talking about a difference of more than $4 million per year between quarterbacks and wide receivers, the next highest franchise tag position. Compare this to the NSFL, where the gap between ALL positions is only 6% total, or roughly $5 million per year. I’d argue that the NSFL is a more “fair” league when it comes to player compensation regardless of position. The gap between the highest paid position and the lowest paid position in the NFL is a whopping 11%; at the end of the day, a top tier NFL safety is never going to have a salary comparable to a top tier NFL quarterback or wide receiver. In the NSFL, however, players of any position could expect a competitive salary bump when compared with players from other positions if franchise tagged.
Looking closely at the cap percentages for each position, we can see a few interesting things happening. An interesting similarity to note is that running backs are de-valued in both leagues. Running backs are a risky investment at any level of football, and it shows here. Both leagues clearly value the passing game, as evidenced by the #2 ranking of NFL wide receivers and #1 ranking of their NSFL counterparts. However, there is a clear difference in the way that each league values its quarterbacks. Quarterbacks are far and away the most valued pieces of an NFL roster; in the NSFL, there are three other positions that GMs are valuing higher. If we look at the highest paid players in each league based on average pay per year, the discrepancy is even more clear. Imagine if I told you that the highest paid players in the NFL were a running back and a linebacker. You’d probably call me out instantly for being incorrect, because that probably hasn’t happened in the NFL since the 1960s (totally a shot in the dark). However, the NSFL’s two highest paid players are in fact Chicago Butchers running back Sean O’Leary ($24.3 million over 3 years) and San Jose Sabercats linebacker Tyron Brackenridge ($24 million over 3 years). In fact, there are 6 players at other positions in the NSFL that are paid a higher average annual salary than the highest paid quarterback. To contrast, in the NFL’s list of contracts by average pay per year, you’d have to go all the way down 12 spots before you’d find a non-quarterback (it’s OLB Khalil Mack of the Chicago Bears, if you’re curious).
The major question here is, why is there such a difference in the way quarterbacks are valued between the NFL and NSFL? Clearly, passing is important in both leagues. Pass catchers are valued similarly in both leagues, whether you’re looking at wide receivers (#2 and #1 in each league), tight ends (#9 and #8), or even running backs (#7 and #5). But the actual passers themselves are not valued even remotely the same. To leave the realm of numbers for a moment and speak purely on conjecture, I think it has to do with the overall pool of available average to above-average starting quarterbacks for each league. I believe that, as a whole, it’s easier to find a starting quarterback that will develop into a top-tier player in the NSFL than it is to do the same in the NFL. Additionally, I think that today’s NFL is a little bit more pass happy than the NSFL is, and a lot more of the offensive game plan is in the hands of an NFL quarterback as opposed to an NSFL quarterback.
So, if we were to take your typical top-tier NSFL player and drop him/her into the NFL, where would they stand? In the table above, I’ve taken the average yearly salary of the highest paid NSFL player at each position, and found the NFL player with the average yearly salary that is closest or equal to the NSFL player’s salary. At quarterback, the highest paid NSFL player is essentially making middle-of-the-road backup level NFL salary. As stated above, quarterbacks are valued at a massive premium in the NFL, so this makes sense. At every other position, the highest paid NSFL player has an average yearly salary comparable to a mid level starter in the NFL. The only place (besides quarterback) where you could argue that this isn’t true, interestingly enough, is at running back; the highest paid running back in the NSFL (Sam Torenson, PHI) would be a top 10 running back in the NFL by average yearly salary. Torenson’s average yearly salary is comparable to Austin Ekeler, who just signed a new contract with the Los Angeles Chargers as their featured back. So, if you want to make NFL star player money in the NSFL, be a highly valued running back. Definitely DON’T be a quarterback.
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Just for fun and while we’re on the subject of player compensation, I thought it would be cool to compare the highest paid NSFL player at each position with the highest paid NFL player at the same position. This is mostly subjective and purely for the sake of starting conversations. Please feel free to agree or disagree with anything I state here.
QUARTERBACK:
NSFL - Rose Jenkins, Chicago Butchers
Total contract value: $16,000,000 over 4 years
S20: 328 yds/game, 28 TDs, 12 INTs, 85.2 passer rating
NFL - Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
Total contract value: $150,000,000 over 5 years
2019: 280 yds/game, 26 TDs, 14 INTs, 92.1 passer rating
Honestly, when I look at their last season stats, I would take Rose Jenkins over Matt Ryan. Jenkins threw two more TDs and was picked off only 12 times vs. 14 for Ryan. She also averages nearly 50 more yards per game. Ryan was a slightly more accurate passer, but the stats as a whole here are very comparable and it makes Jenkins seem like an absolute bargain compared to her NFL counterpart. It’s close, and you’d love to have either one, but I’d personally take Jenkins over Ryan. Jenkins looks to be a solid future investment while Ryan is probably entering the later stage of his career.
RUNNING BACK:
NSFL - Sam Torenson, Philadelphia Liberty
Total contract value: $18,000,000 over 3 years
S20: 103 yds/game, 4.1 yds/carry, 8 TDs, 208 rec yds, 0 rec TDs
NFL - Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys
Total contract value: $90,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 85 yds/game, 4.5 yds/carry, 12 TDs, 420 rec yds, 2 TDs
This is close. Sam Torenson is clearly a workhorse. Averaging more than 100 yards per game is no easy feat over a full season. That being said, Ezekiel Elliott found the endzone 6 more times than Torenson, and also adds more in the passing game. I’d give the edge to Elliott here because 6 TDs is a pretty large difference, and the passing game is all-important in today’s football landscape, but Torenson is no slouch either. There’s good reason why his per-year salary would be considered top 10 NFL RB money.
WIDE RECEIVER:
NSFL - Sean O’Leary, Chicago Butchers
Total contract value: $24,250,000 over 3 years
S20: 83 catches, 96 yds/game, 15.1 yds/catch, 9 TDs
NFL - Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints
Total contract value: $96,250,000 over 5 years
2019: 149 catches, 108 yds/game, 11.6 yds/catch, 9 TDs
There’s no contest here, but that’s no fault of Sean O’Leary. 83 catches and nearly 1300 yards receiving is a great season by any standard. You slot O’Leary into most NFL rosters with that production and he’d be a number 1 option. But last year, Michael Thomas had as close to an MVP season as any wide receiver we’ve seen in the last decade. 149 catches in one season while averaging more than 100 yards per game is absolutely insane. And that’s after a 125 catch, 1400 yard season in 2018. No other wide receiver in either league is responsible for such a large share of his team’s offensive touches and production. Thomas is worth every bit of the $96 million to the Saints, and I’d probably take him at that price too.
TIGHT END:
NSFL - Earl Sauce, Colorado Yeti
Total contract value: $10,500,000 over 3 years
S20: 56 catches, 34 yds/game, 7.9 yds/catch, 7 TDs
NFL - Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
Total contract value: $46,842,000 over 5 years
2019: 97 catches, 77 yds/game, 12.7 yds/catch, 5 TDs
The NSFL as a whole didn’t have a single tight end break 900 yards receiving in S20, so the statistical difference here may also be a matter of philosophy between the two leagues. Tight ends aren’t typically the first option in the NSFL. That being said, Travis Kelce has the stats of a number 1 wide receiver while playing tight end. He is extremely productive in the passing game. Sauce was the leader in TDs among all tight ends; he’s a solid red zone target for COL. One very important aspect that is hard to quantify here is blocking ability. I honestly can’t tell you how good of a blocker Earl Sauce is. I’m sure he’s solid. Overall though, Kelce is the preferred option here by a decent margin. Note: this is the only case among the four offensive skill positions where the highest paid NSFL player is not the statistical league leader at that position. Cameron Olsen (SJS) outperformed Sauce in every stat except for TDs (6 TDs).
OFFENSIVE LINE:
NSFL - Brave Ulysses, New Orleans Second Line
Total contract value: $6,000,000 over 2 years
S20: 59 pancakes, 0 sacks allowed, 1971 team rushing yards
NFL - Tyron Smith, Dallas Cowboys
Total contract value: $97,600,000 over 8 years
2019: ?? pancakes, 1 sack allowed, 2153 team rushing yards
Pancakes are not an official stat in the NFL, and the only website that keeps any record of pancakes is PFF (I’m not paying for PFF Premium just so I can see offensive line stats). Ulysses had an great season, allowing no sacks and blocking for NOLA on their way to the 3rd best rushing attack in the NSFL. Tyron Smith had a similarly great season, only allowing one sack and helping DAL’s 5th ranked rushing attack. Ulysses is probably a better value with an average yearly salary $9m less than Smith, but as we saw in the above analysis, offensive linemen are valued much higher in the NFL than they are in the NSFL. I’d bet that Ulysses would garner a similar salary to Smith if you dropped him on an NFL roster. You’d take either of these players on your line and trust that they’ll be solid in both pass protection and run blocking.
DEFENSIVE LINE:
NSFL - Thorian Skarsgard, Chicago Butchers
Total contract value: $22,000,000 over 3 years
S20: 7 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 42 tackles (0 for loss)
NFL - Aaron Donald, Los Angeles Rams
Total contract value: $135,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 12.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 48 tackles (20 for loss)
Newsflash: Aaron Donald is a pretty incredible football player. 12.5 sacks and 48 tackles with 20 of them for a loss while primarily playing at defensive tackle? Those stats look like what you’d expect from an edge rusher, but Donald is doing it from the inside. Let’s give credit where credit is due; Thorian Skarsgard is also playing primarily from the inside, and 7 sacks and 42 tackles are solid numbers for a defensive tackle. That being said, Skarsgard is not just the highest paid defensive lineman in the NSFL, he is the third highest paid player in the NSFL period. 7 sacks and 0 tackles for loss isn’t quite what you want to see from your biggest team investment. Donald’s value to the Rams defensive front can’t be overstated, and most coordinators would agree that you’d take him over pretty much any defensive tackle right now.
LINEBACKER:
NSFL - Tyron Brackenridge, San Jose Sabercats
Total contract value: $24,000,000 over 3 years
S20: 89 tackles (1 for loss), 1 forced fumble, 10 sacks, 1 INT, 13 passes defensed
NFL - Khalil Mack, Chicago Bears
Total contract value: $141,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 47 tackles (8 for loss), 5 forced fumbles, 8.5 sacks, 0 INT, 4 passes defensed
Yes, I’m aware that Mack probably plays DE just as much as he does LB. However, he has been listed as an OLB since moving to the Bears. That technically makes him the highest paid linebacker in the NFL. Mack was brought to the Bears primarily to rush the QB. In 2019, he posted his lowest sack total since his rookie season. He’s not great in pass defense, and if we’re listing him as a LB, then we’re going to factor pass defense into this. 8 tackles for loss is 7 more than his NSFL counterpart, Tyron Brackenridge, but Brackenridge was clearly the more productive player last year, with nearly double the amount of total tackles, double digit sacks, and 4 times as many passes defensed. Mack severely underplayed his contract last year; Brackenridge is the better value right now and would be a solid starter in the NFL based on his production last year.
CORNERBACK:
NSFL - AJ Lattimer, Orange County Otters
Total contract value: $20,000,000 over 4 years
S20: 3 INT (1 returned for TD), 15 passes defensed, 72 tackles
NFL - Xavien Howard, Miami Dolphins
Total contract value: $75,250,000 over 5 years
2019: 1 INT, 4 passes defensed, 17 tackles
Howard’s 2019 stats are obviously severely deflated, as he was only able to suit up for 5 games in 2019 for the Dolphins. He was a good starter for them during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, but I don’t think anybody is going to tell you that he was worth the massive contract extension that Miami signed him to prior to the 2019 season. On the other side, AJ Lattimer is a similarly good starter for the Otters, tying for 3rd in the league with 3 INTs in S20 and a solid 15 passes defensed. There were a number of corners in the NSFL, however, who had better statistical years. I’m going to go ahead and say that neither of these guys are worth being the HIGHEST paid cornerbacks in each league, but both are decent starting-caliber cornerbacks who can hold their own against most receivers. This is a toss up for me; I’d take either one.
SAFETY:
NSFL - Logan Uchiha, Baltimore Hawks
Total contract value: $18,000,000 over 2 years
S20: 88 tackles (2 for loss), 6 sacks, 1 INT, 10 passes defensed
NFL - Landon Collins, Washington Redskins
Total contract value: $84,000,000 over 6 years
2019: 117 tackles (9 for loss), 1 sack, 0 INT, 4 passes defensed
This is a tough comparison. From what I can tell, Uchiha actually played primarily at LB for the Hawks defense during S20. Collins, meanwhile, was one of the league’s best safeties from 2015-2017, but is currently experiencing a little bit of a downward slump with no picks since the end of the 2017 season. Uchiha’s stats paint a pretty well-rounded picture, with 6 sacks, 10 passes defensed, and a solid 88 tackles over 13 games. Collins was obviously still heavily involved with 117 tackles through 16 games, but his lack of production everywhere else isn’t what you’d expect from the highest paid safety in the NFL. It remains to be seen whether Uchiha will continue to be productive after moving to safety, but I would still take him over Collins at this point, because I don’t see an end to Collins’ slump anytime soon.
PLACEKICKER/PUNTER:
NSFL - Dougie Smalls, Yellowknife Wraiths
Total contract value: $9,000,000 over 3 years
S20 (with TIJ in DSFL): 18/20 XPs (90%), 19/21 FGs (90.5%), 50 yd longest
NFL - Harrison Butker, Kansas City Chiefs
Total contract value: $20,275,000 over 5 years
2019: 45/48 XPs (93.8%), 34/38 FGs (89.5%), 56 yd longest
There are those of you who may believe that any serviceable kicker is enough for a team. You may say that kickers are all the same. Let me remind everybody that Cody Parkey and the double doink were a thing. All kickers are NOT made the same. A consistently reliable kicker is an absolute asset for any team. That being said, both Dougie Smalls and Harrison Butker were among the most consistent kickers in their respective leagues. Smalls played S20 in the DSFL, where he ranked 2nd in field goal percentage. Harrison Butker ranked 1st in field goals made and 6th in field goal percentage in 2019. Both kickers have a pretty comparable average yearly salary ($3m/yr for Smalls and $4.05m/yr for Butker). Both are great values and I’d take either one. You could easily substitute one for the other in either league and you’d probably be fine. In this case, the highest paid kickers ARE the same, I guess.
WORD COUNT: 3532
![[Image: naKZMSt.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/naKZMSt.jpg)
"I don't care too much what happened in the past. I prefer to focus on what is coming next and I'm really looking forward to it."
- Sebastian Vettel
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