Best long-snappers in NFL for the 2023 season are Jake McQuaide, Patrick Scales, Joe Cardona, Josh Harris, JJ Jansen and Rick Lovato.
The long snapper is a special team player who plays center and snaps the ball father than usual, usually around 15 yards for punts and 7-8 yards for field goals and extra points.
How much does a long snapper make in the NFL?
Snappers makes an average salary of around $800,000, with highest paid snapper receiving around $1.57 million.
They are usually not drafted by the team but are typically signed as an undrafted free agent, except for some players. Some of the NFL drafted players are listed below:
- Colin Holba – 2017 Steelers
- Hunter Bradley – 2018 Packers
- Austin Cutting – 2019 Vikings
- Blake Ferguson – 2020 Dolphins
- Thomas Fletcher – 2021 Panthers
- Joe Cardona – 2015 Patriots
Don Muhlbach – Lions
Don Muhkbach salary averaged $1,175,000 annually before his contract ended in the 2021 season. He played 17 seasons for the Lions.
One of the best snappers in the NFL, Muhkbach currently serves as special assistant for the Detroit Lions after the team released him on August 17, 2021.
He was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the 2004 season as an undrafted free agent before starting his journey with the Lions as a Long snapper.
Mukhkbach has gained two-time Pro Bowl in 2012 and 2018. In his NFL career, Don has played 260 games, has 26 tackles record, and is named a one-forced fumble.
He also played for Lufkin High School in Texas as a senior before joining Texas A&M University, where he got the most valuable player and All-District honors.
Rick Lovato – Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles long snapper Rick Lovato salary is $1,165,000 for the 2023 season. Lovato signed a 4-year deal with the Eagles in 2019 worth $4,525,000.
Lovato has been playing with Eagles since 2016. He previously played for the Old Dominion Monarchs football team during his college football career.
Lovato was first signed up by the Chicago Bears in 2015 as an undrafted free agent. He became the Super Bowl Champion in 2017 and achieved Pro Bowl in 2019.
Rick was enrolled in four NFL teams, namely the Bears, Packers, Redskins, and Eagles, since 2015. However, he was with the Eagles since 2016 and played his second career Super Bowl against Kansas City Chiefs.
In his 9-year career, he has played in 105 games since 2015 and has recorded 20 tackles with 11 solo and 9 assists.
J.J. Jansen – Panthers
J.J. Jansen joined the NFL team Green Bay Packers in 2008 as an undrafted free agent. However, he did not play a single snap for the Packers.
Jansen was the only player to have a record for the most game played by the Panthers with 222 games, now leading the record book with 226 career games. He was also part of the team when Panthers lost the Super Bowl 50 against the Broncos by 21-10.
In 2023, Jansen signed a one-year contract extension with them worth $1,317,500 with a base salary of $1,165,000. He is the 20th highest-paid long snapper in the NFL in terms of salary cap.
As of 2022 NFL career, he has recorded 21 tackles, including 10 solo and 11 assists, and has one forced fumble.
In his early career, Jansen played as a quarterback for RSPS Mustangs and led the team to an MVAL championship in 1999. Similarly, He played college football at Notre Dame from 2004 to 2007.
Zak DeOssie – Giants
Long Snapper DeOssie Played for the New York Giants from 2007 to 2019. He was drafted in the fourth round of the 2007 NFL Draft by the Giants as a linebacker.
DeOssie has granted two Super Bowl victories with the Giants in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI against his hometown team New England Patriots.
Besides that, he also made two Pro Bowls in 2008 and 2010 as a long snapper and was named three-time first-team All-Ivy League from 2004 to 2006.
He is the son of Steve DeOssie, a former linebacker who also won the Super Bowl with the Giants. Steve and Zak’s duo were the first father-son duo to win Super Bowls with the same franchise.
Zak retired from the NFL in 2020 after playing in 199 games and recording 87 tackles, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.
During his college career, he was part of Brown University, where he played 36 games with 29 starts and recovered 315 tackles with 10.5 sacks and 36.5 stops for losses.
Tyler Ott – Ravens
31-year-old Long snapper Tyler Ott plays for the NFL franchise Baltimore Ravens after spending six seasons with Seahawks. In 2020, he was named Pro Bowler as the starting long snapper.
Tyler Ott entered the NFL team, Patriots, as an undrafted free agent in 2014. Since then, He has played 85 games and recorded 3 solo and 1 assist tackles in his professional career.
Undrafted in 2014, he spent time with the Patriots, Rams, Giants, Bengals, and Seahawks before joining the Ravens in 2023.
He signed a one-year deal with the Ravens worth $1.08 million with a base salary of $1,08,000 on July 2023, replacing the long-snapper Nick Moore.
Josh Harris – Chargers
Chargers Josh Harris signed a four-year contract with the Chargers and will be paid $5.6 million. The average salary is around $1,400,000 for the 2023 season.
He was signed by the Atlanta Falcons in 2012 as an undrafted free agent. Since 2022, he is in the list of active roster for the Los Angeles Chargers.
Harris completed his 10-year career with Falcons with 156 games, including 17 solo and 11 assist tackles, and one forced fumble.
During his tenure at Falcons, Harris, and the Falcons have made Super Bowl appearances in Super Bowl LI, where they lost the game against Patriots by 28-34 in overtime.
Moreover, he achieved his first Pro Bowl in 2021 and was also named second-team All-Pro in the same year.
Joe Cardona – Patriots
Joe Cardona is the highest paid long snapper earning an average salary of $1,575,000 annually. His four-year contract with the Patriots will pay him $6.3 million.
One of the best in business, he has made 15 tackles from 127 games in his NFL career.
Cardona was selected in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft, became the fourth long snapper ever to be drafted, and was the second highest-pick after Ryan Pontbriand.
Cardona has been part of the Super Bowl Championship victories twice in Super Bowl LI and Super Bowl LIII with the Patriots.
Before joining the New England Patriots, he was enrolled in the Navy, where he compiled a 30-21 record with four wins over arch-Army.
Patrick Scales – Bears
Bears long snapper Patrick Scales has played in NFL with five different franchises namely the Ravens, Dolphins, Jets, Buccaneers, and Bears. He is in the active roster for Bears since 2015.
Utah State Aggies alumni Scales was selected by the Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2011.
In his professional football career in the NFL, Scales was ranked 11th at his position in the 2011 NFL Draft by NFLDraftScout.com.
In 2022 he signed a one-year extension deal with Chicago at $1,272,500 with a $152,500 signing bonus, $1,047,500 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $1,272,500.
During his NFL career, Patrick played 105 games for 14 tackles. Similarly, he has granted academic all-state and all-region honors during high school at Webber.
Jake McQuaide – Lions
McQuaide will earn $1,272,500 this year, including a $152,500 signing bonus, $152,500 guaranteed, and an average salary of $1,317,500.
He was also regarded as one of the best NFL long snippers for the Detroit Lions. He signed with the Lions in 2023 after spending two seasons with the Cowboys.
He entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2011 and spent his first ten seasons with Louis/Los Angels Rams.
Jake McQuaide is a two-time Pro Bowler in the 2016 and 2017 seasons and has played 181 games in his career and 10 tackles.
Moreover, Jake was a college football player at Ohio State, where he joined the team without a scholarship. He helped the Buckeyes win three Big Ten Conference titles in 2007, 2008, and 2009.