Everyone's goal is championships. Why do you think they play the game? They already got the money. Even the lowest paid NFL player has plenty of money to put food on the table...please. We all know that not everyone can win, but that doesn't mean it isn't their goal.
Yeah, I don't think that's really it. Having played sports most of my life, I firmly believe that there are some people that are just never going to be able to win on their own. I don't know what the exact term would be, but it's one thing to run fast, or catch a football. It's another thing entirely to be able to in real time determine what will be necessary to win in that moment against another very good team that wants to win as bad as we do.
I love Mike Mussina (baseball pitcher), and he has something like four ONE-hitters; he's come within ONE PITCH of a perfect game, and within two outs of a perfect game two other times. To me, as much as I love him, he's a Hall Of Famer, but that tells me there is a lack of killer instinct there. Sport, performance, is not a "black" and "white" or "good"/"bad" exercise. There are degrees.
Some of the guys going for the money might as well; they're never going to get the alternative, unless they can latch onto a team like the Pats or the Rams or the Bucs, who have a legit shot to win a champeenship. Other guys - the Brady's of the world - can instantly MAKE a team a champeenship team, and so it makes a little more sense for them to balance the money. Tom Brady is not going to ever be known for the money he made, he will be known for the championships he has won. I fear that Deshaun Watson will never be known for the championships he won, but for the size of his salary (assuming that his off-the-field antics aren't his defining moment). Same with Aaron Rodgers.