CLEVELAND — Shedeur Sanders earned $17.7 million in NFLPA group licensing income in 2025, setting a new record for the highest single-season earnings from this source. His total surpassed Tom Brady’s previous record of $9.5 million, which was set during Brady’s tenure with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The $17.7 million was paid to Sanders’ LLC, SS2 Legendary LLC, between May 2025 and February 2026, according to the NFL Players Association LM-2 filing. The payments, categorized as “royalties/player marketing,” totaled $17,712,015 across 13 separate disbursements. The largest single payment was $9,241,318 on May 16, 2025, followed by a second payment of $2,086,563 on January 23, 2026.

Shedeur Sanders' licensing earnings in 2025 also exceeded those of Patrick Mahomes from the same revenue stream that year. NFLPA group licensing income comes from officially licensed products that use player names, images, and likenesses, including jersey sales, trading cards, and video games.

Sanders was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft and signed a four-year rookie contract worth approximately $4.65 million, including a signing bonus of just over $447,000. His NFL earnings stand in contrast to his substantial off-field revenue through group licensing.

Before entering the NFL, Sanders played college football at Jackson State and Colorado. During his college career, he secured name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals with major brands including Nike, Beats by Dre, Gatorade, and Mercedes-Benz. These early commercial partnerships preceded his record-breaking NFLPA licensing income in his rookie professional season.

Group licensing revenue is distributed to players based on usage in collective product lines, and participation requires enrollment in the NFLPA’s group licensing program. Sanders’ record earnings reflect broad commercial use of his likeness across multiple product categories during his first year in the league.