What Every Position Costs in College Football

The short version

A proven Power 4 starting quarterback reportedly cost $1.5 million to $2.5 million in the winter portal window—and by August 2026, ESPN's updated survey of general managers and agents put the typical starter range at $1 million to $3 million. A starting tackle or edge rusher generally ran $500,000 to $1 million. A reliable starting kicker can still cost less than $100,000. Those figures come from the people writing the checks: general managers and agents surveyed by CBS Sports in December 2025, corroborated by ESPN's reporting through the January portal window, and re-surveyed by ESPN in August 2026.

This page is the position-by-position reference—every reported range in one table and one chart, with The NIL Standard's own starter valuations overlaid. Our numbers are built separately from those surveys—drawn from public depth charts, production data, and market signals—which makes the overlay a real test: our starter bands land inside the reported ranges at all 12 position groups, and our medians fall inside the reported typical-starter bands at 10 of 12 against the winter surveys—and at 12 of 12 against ESPN's August 2026 update. Every figure is an estimated market value, not a salary.

For the full map of how college athletes get paid—school revenue sharing, collectives, and brand deals—start with our cornerstone guide, How College Athletes Get Paid.

The market at a glance

Reported price ranges for the 2026 cycle, by position group. "Low end" is what a fringe or unproven starter reportedly costs, "typical starter" is the going rate for an established one, and "elite" is the reported ceiling tier. The table now carries two vintages of the typical band—the winter (December–January) figures and ESPN's August 2026 update—so the market's movement is visible in one row.

The August 2026 re-survey

In August 2026, ESPN surveyed general managers, front-office staff, and agents again on what starters cost at every position. The updated typical-starter bands sit above the winter figures at most positions, and the August survey prices kickers, punters, and long snappers separately where the winter surveys treated specialists as one bucket. Position-by-position detail from the re-survey now appears in each section below. Our valuations have not changed since June 11, 2026; the table above shows both vintages so the movement in the reported market is visible.

Why the hierarchy looks like this

The shape is no accident. General managers surveyed by CBS Sports said top quarterbacks can absorb roughly 20 percent of a top program's player budget—the scarcest, most game-deciding position prices accordingly. The next tier is the players who protect the quarterback and the players who hunt him: offensive tackle and edge have long been the premium non-QB spots, and the 2026 window priced them that way.

The interior line and off-ball linebacker are where roster builders find value—real starters at a fraction of premium-position cost. The whole structure mirrors NFL positional economics, compressed into a younger market. And that market is moving fast: one SEC general manager told CBS Sports the going rate for an average starter roughly doubled in a year, from about $300,000 to about $600,000. The Athletic reported that the going rate for a proven transfer quarterback—the tier that included LSU's Sam Leavitt—was expected to start around $4 million and reach $5–6 million.

Position by position

Quarterback

Quarterback is the market. In the winter window, proven Power 4 starters reportedly ran $1.5 million to $2.5 million, with the elite tier starting around $3.5 million. ESPN's pre-window reporting had the best available passers expecting $3–4 million with the top of the class up to $5 million, and its post-window wrap confirmed the leaders realized $3–5 million—reported figures for individual deals this cycle ran as high as $6 million. Scarcity does the pricing: per CBS Sports' GM sourcing, a top quarterback alone can absorb about a fifth of a player budget.

ESPN's August re-survey put the typical starter at $1 million to $3 million and had GMs expecting the average Power 4 starter deal to clear $2 million, with one surveyed GM putting the conference split at roughly $1–2 million in the ACC and Big 12 and $2–3 million in the Big Ten and SEC. The reported top of the summer market reached $4–5 million, one outlier deal reportedly approached $8 million, and even inexperienced passers moving into starting roles reportedly signed in the $2.5–3 million range. The survey stressed these are all-in figures — revenue share blended with multimedia-rights and apparel money — and front offices were already bracing for the best available passers to approach $6 million next January.

Wide receiver

Receiver pricing fanned out wider than almost any other position in the winter window: $300,000–$500,000 at the low end, $500,000–$800,000 for a typical starter, and $1 million–$2 million for a true No. 1. CBS Sports' GM sourcing projected then-Auburn wideout Cam Coleman around the $2 million range entering the window—the reported going rate for a receiver a staff believes is an offense's centerpiece.

By August, GMs believed a sizable group of proven playmakers had cleared $1 million through re-signings and transfers, while $500,000–$600,000 remained the ideal range for a veteran No. 2 and young No. 3 options ran $200,000–$300,000. The survey also flagged receiver as the easiest position to source affordably from the Group of 6 and FCS ranks — value that rarely stays cheap once the production shows up.

Edge rusher

Edge is the defense's premium line item—in the winter window, $300,000–$500,000 at the low end, $600,000–$1 million typical, and $1 million–$1.7 million for proven pass-rush production. CBS Sports reported that an edge of Dylan Stewart's caliber would have commanded roughly $2 million had he entered the portal—the clearest signal of where the true top of this market sits.

By August, the reported floor for experienced portal pass rushers was about $900,000, with one surveyed GM putting the portal ceiling closer to $1.5 million; programs without seven-figure budgets still found rotational talent at $500,000–$600,000, often preferring three or four players in that range. The survey's watch item was the high school market, where GMs reported hearing of two-year deals for top-100 2027 edge recruits starting at $1 million to $1.5 million per year.

Defensive tackle

The interior surged this cycle: in the winter window, $250,000–$500,000 entry pricing, $500,000–$700,000 typical, and $800,000 to $1.5 million-plus for disruptive three-down tackles. ESPN's post-window reporting found seven-figure deals readily available for defensive linemen—run-game gravity and interior pocket push now get paid like premium traits.

The August survey described the summer's defensive tackle market as the cycle's most confounding: coveted transfers with NFL potential took $1 million or more to engage, one agent reported a client fielding multiple offers of $1.3 million or more, and one surveyed GM's updated range for an SEC-caliber starter ran $600,000 to $1.5 million. A less-proven tier could still be had at $500,000–$800,000 — and one surveyed GM doubted a $400,000 starting defensive tackle still exists.

Offensive tackle

Tackle is the classic non-QB premium. Reported winter entry pricing was $300,000–$500,000, a typical starter ran $500,000–$1 million, and proven blindside protection cleared $1 million. ESPN reported agents had little trouble finding seven-figure deals for tackles in the January window—and that Colorado's Jordan Seaton entered it positioned to effectively set his own price.

The August survey confirmed the tackle premium kept climbing: re-signing a top starting tackle commonly ran a reported $1 million to $1.4 million, portal recruitments for starters reached $1.2 million to $1.5 million, and even experienced Group of 6 tackles closed in the $800,000–$900,000 range. One surveyed agent put $1.5 million as the practical high end — with a reported deal for an elite high school tackle prospect approaching $2 million per year signaling where that ceiling is headed.

Cornerback

Corner pricing rewards proven cover men—in the winter window, $150,000–$350,000 entry, $400,000–$700,000 typical, and $800,000 to $1 million-plus for lockdown play. The reported band prices the whole room—boundary, field, and the slot and nickel defenders who are effectively starters in modern defenses.

The August survey nudged corner's floor upward: some Big Ten and SEC staffers now put the bottom for a starter closer to $500,000 after struggling to find options under $400,000 in the window, while the best corners reportedly earn a little over $1 million. Re-signing a starter under $600,000 counted as good value this offseason.

Running back

Running back is the cheapest premium-skill spot to fill at the low end—serviceable starters reportedly entered the winter window around $250,000. The typical band ran $400,000–$700,000, and proven difference-makers cleared $1 million. Backs are priced on demonstrated workload more than projection; this market pays after the tape, not before it.

The August survey found the running back band largely unchanged year over year: $500,000–$600,000 was still described as the sweet spot for a lead back, elite backs ran a reported $750,000 to $1 million, and several Big Ten staffers put the top of the market at $1 million to $1.2 million. The position stays philosophy-driven — plenty of programs would rather pay a starter $500,000 and a second back around $300,000 than chase the top tier.

Safety

Safety ran a notch below corner in the winter surveys: $200,000–$350,000 at the low end, $350,000–$500,000 typical, and $700,000 to $1 million for rangy, do-everything types—the players a defense asks to cover the slot, fill the box, and play the post on consecutive snaps.

Safety was the August survey's biggest mover: scarcity, plus several programs needing multiple starters at once, pushed the coveted tier to a reported $500,000–$900,000 — and per the surveyed GMs and agents, top safeties now approach corner money, largely closing the winter gap between the two secondary positions.

Tight end

Tight end stayed affordable in the winter window: $200,000–$300,000 at the low end, $300,000–$500,000 typical, and $600,000–$800,000 at the top of the position. The spread reflects role breadth—inline blockers come cheaper, while the flex receiving piece in a tight-end-forward scheme is what pushes toward the ceiling.

ESPN's August survey found the tight end ceiling got a modest bump rather than a substantial one: most staffs reported paying $500,000–$600,000 for their No. 1, a few who retained starters in the $600,000–$900,000 range conceded they likely overpaid, and the price for a second tight end typically sat near $250,000.

Interior offensive line

Interior line pricing tracked tight end in the winter window: $200,000–$300,000 low, $300,000–$500,000 typical, $600,000–$800,000 elite. Centers carry a quiet premium inside that band—CBS Sports' GM sourcing put good ones around $500,000—because the position calls protections and touches every snap.

Interior line was one of the few spots the August survey found flat: the going rate for guards and centers didn't move much, though agents reported two-year deals for rising starters in the $1.3–1.4 million range and center outcomes as far apart as a reported $1 million and $500,000 for comparable roles. One reported reason for the restraint: nearly 120 linemen transferred up from the Group of 6 and FCS levels this offseason, easing interior supply.

Linebacker

Off-ball linebacker remains the market's best value—in the winter window, $150,000–$250,000 at the low end and $250,000–$500,000 for most starters. The $700,000-plus tier is reserved for sideline-to-sideline players who never leave the field.

Linebacker held its title as the most affordable defensive position: the August survey put the average cost of a team's top linebacker closer to $600,000 than $800,000, reserved the $700,000s for proven multi-year starters, and still found quality starters at roughly half that — especially in the ACC and Big 12.

Kicker and punter

Specialist money is real but modest: in the winter window, solid starting kickers and punters reportedly ran $50,000–$100,000, with the best pushing $100,000–$200,000. The market is thin—most programs solve the position for less than a backup lineman costs.

ESPN's August survey broke specialists out for the first time in this survey series: kickers at a reported $50,000–$200,000 and punters at $50,000–$150,000, with several GMs comfortable paying $100,000 for a starting kicker and one contender staffer putting a great portal kicker as high as $300,000. Long snappers reportedly top out near $50,000, and some programs still carry specialists on scholarship alone — so the true low end remains close to zero.

How our numbers compare

The ranges above are other people's numbers—dozens of general managers and agents surveyed by CBS Sports, plus ESPN's reporting through the window and its August 2026 re-survey. Our valuations are built separately, from public depth charts, production data, and market signals, with no access to anyone's books. That independence makes the overlay a real test: if the model is sound, its starter distributions should land where the people writing the checks say the market is.

So we tested it. We took every projected starter across all 68 Power 4 programs on live depth charts as of June 11, 2026—1,611 players, after a small number of documented sync-lag corrections recorded in our committed analysis script—and computed each position group's 25th-to-90th percentile valuation band and median. Those are the dark bands and tick marks in the chart at the top of this page.

The result against the winter surveys, exactly as computed: our P25–P90 starter bands fall inside the independently reported ranges at all 12 position groups, and our medians land inside the GM-quoted winter typical-starter bands at 10 of 12. The two exceptions are defensive tackle and safety, where our medians sit a few percent above the winter typical band while remaining inside the overall reported range.

Re-running the same test against ESPN's August 2026 bands—with our valuations unchanged since June 11, 2026—our medians land inside the updated typical-starter ranges at 12 of 12 position groups. The winter exceptions—defensive tackle and safety—fall inside the August bands because the updated survey raised the top of both ranges. Our estimates did not move between the two readings; the reported ranges did.

Two disclosures keep that claim honest. First, about 6 percent of the starter values in that population carry documented manual corrections—cases where a publicly reported deal or an editorial review replaces the model's output. Remove every one of them and all 12 groups still land inside the reported ranges. Second, the top of our quarterback range leans on documented entries rather than model output—the cycle's reported mega-deals enter our dataset as documented corrections. In that same test, with every manual correction removed, our QB P90 falls from about $4 million to roughly $2.1 million—still inside the reported span, but below the reported elite tier. The model is calibrated to the market; the very top of the QB market is documented rather than modeled.

A few notes on what was measured. Multi-slot positions contribute multiple starters (two tackles, three interior linemen, three receivers), so the 12 groups cover 1,611 players rather than 68 elevens. Slot and nickel defenders count within cornerback, which matches how the reported CB ranges price the room—nickel pricing is explicitly part of that market. And the edge-versus-interior split follows each depth chart's designation, so a few 3-4 strongside ends land on the edge side of the line. The full build—every input, and where reported deals replace the model—is in our methodology. Every figure we publish is an estimated market value, not a reported salary, except where we say a deal was publicly reported.

Two notes on reading the overlay against the August survey. First, survey ranges drawn from general managers and agents skew toward acquisition cost—what it takes to sign a starter who is on the market. Our medians cover the full projected-starter population, retained players and acquisitions alike, so medians that sit mid-band rather than at the top of a reported range are the expected shape, not a shortfall. Second, ESPN's August survey prices kickers, punters, and long snappers separately, while we publish a combined kicker/punter group; that combined median sits inside both the kicker range and the punter range, and it must clear both for us to count the group as in-band. Long snappers are not part of our measured starter population and we do not publish a separate long-snapper group.

Where the money comes from

Common questions

Are these numbers salaries?

No. The ranges are reported market figures from GM and agent surveys and national reporting, and our overlaid bands are estimated market values from our model. Nothing on this page is a salary or a confirmed contract unless we say a deal was publicly reported.

What is the most expensive position in college football?

Quarterback, by a wide margin. A typical Power 4 starter reportedly cost $1.5 million to $2.5 million in the winter window—$1 million to $3 million in ESPN's August 2026 update—top reported deals reached $4–6 million, and GM sourcing says a top quarterback can absorb roughly 20 percent of an entire player budget.

Why do tackles and edge rushers cost more than other non-quarterbacks?

Because they protect—or attack—the most expensive player on the field. Pass protection and pass rush are the scarcest non-QB skills, so they carry the largest premiums, the same structure the NFL's salary allocation has shown for decades.

How do The NIL Standard's valuations compare to the reported market?

Our P25–P90 starter bands sit inside the independently reported ranges at all 12 position groups, and our medians land inside the reported typical-starter bands at 10 of 12 against the winter surveys and 12 of 12 against ESPN's August 2026 update—see How our numbers compare for the full result, including the disclosures that keep it honest.