The median NFL salary in 2007 was $770,000 and the average NFL career is 3 1/2 years. This works out to $2.7 million, which sounds pretty good. But, if I make $60,000 a year for 50 years, that's $3 million. Of course, NFL players can and often have to work after they retire as players. But my point is most NFL players, despite their phenomenal athletic ability and permanent post-career injuries, aren't getting rich. The NFL is about the only business I've heard of in which the employer (i.e. the team owner) can end a signed contract at the any time (by just releasing the player) but the employee (the player) can't. Meanwhile NFL owners are making a ton of money. The Washington Redskins, for example, made $66 million in 2006, plus the franchise doubled in value from 1999 to 2006 (according to Forbes.com) Do a little math and you'll realize the Redskins owners makes as much money from his team in 2 weeks as the average NFL player does in his entire career.

So what?

We have accepted as a fact of life that the rich can systematically screw the less rich, the nearly rich, and the poor. Our entire society is based on this.

It's hard to feel sympathy for the $3M overgrown frat boy retard (no offense to the actual mentally challenged) who date-raped his way through 5 years of basket weaving classes and now finds himself with a bad leg and uncertain job prospects. Fuck him for his shortsightedness. It's tough out here in the non-privileged world.

As far as the contract issue, the players collectively bargained for their rights. If they want guaranteed contracts, they'll have to give up the absurd guaranteed bonuses.

Daniel Snyder may be a douchebag, but he didn't wake up one day and find the Redskins under his pillow. He dropped out of college and started several businesses, most of which failed, probably working as hard or harder than any NFL player ever has or will. Finally he built one that made him a couple hundred million dollars and probably employed a few thousand people. He did something that created real value for society, unlike his current Redskins employees.

If he should be punished for this, it's hard to see why. If you feel he should share the wealth, well, vote for Obama (or if you really mean it, Nader) and hope for the best. Players that are replacable get replaced. Just like janitors, autoworkers, lawyers and CEOs.

So what?

I have no doubt that Mr. Snyder is a very smart, hard-working person who took risks to get where he is today. But my posting and the article are about the NFL and your comments on Mr. Snyder don't seem to have much relevance because they're all about BEFORE he bought an NFL team. In 1999, he bought a very profitable NFL team that continues to be very profitable (in part because of a stupid players union that has agreed to no guaranteed contracts, even if you get injured, in a very injury prone occupation.) Has he improved the product/team ? No, the post-1999 Redskins typically lose more games than the pre-1999 Redskins. Has he created jobs ? Perhaps, he has hired a couple more beer vendors at I'm guessing $10 an hour but, otherwise, no. And he's raised ticket prices on multiple ocassions. I'm not trying to single out Mr. Snyder, because I'm sure most NFL team owners would or have done the same. But my postings on Mr. Snyder have relevance to an article on the NFL, because they're about what he has done on the NFL.

In reply to you so whats ?, I think there's a perception that NFL players, although they're risking permanent injury, make so much money that they never have to work again once their NFL career ends. And unless your name is Peyton Manning, that's not the case. Basketball and baseball players on the other hand -- $50 million guaranteed contracts for average players are quite common. My other point is that, if you're a legitimate NFL prospect in college, please make the most of your college courses and don't take underwater basket-weaving, because you're going to need that college degree to make a living down the road.

Dan Snyder's work habits and one's choice for President are irrelevant to the original post.

However, I do agree that the players screwed themselves with the rediculous collective barganing agreement they signed with management, easily the worst in pro sports. Because of the high risk and short careers, players SHOULD have guaranteed contracts. But they agreed not to. That's on them.

You might like living in a country where a douchebag can abuse people at will. I don't, even if some of the ones getting abused happen to be douchebags too. It doesn't have to be that way. Since you bring up politics, it might be a good start to stop voting for douchebags.

what about Hockey???? IMHO I think they are the most underpaid....

sargesmom,

The revenue the NHL gets from having their games on TV is very small compared to what the NFL (even MLB or the NBA) gets. This makes a big difference in terms of what NHL owners can pay their players, although, of course, their players still make a lot more than you or me. Despite this revenue issue, the NHL owners still offer NHL palyers guaranteed contracts.

OK - a guy gets 2.7 million for 3 or 4 years of work when he's in his 20's. You and I will work for 50 years and amass more than that. What's the average football player going to do with the rest of his life? Have zero income for the rest of his life or work for the remaining 47 years at 60,000 and come out 2.7 million ahead of us? Sorry, but you don't make a big wad of money and then stop everything.

Guaranteed in some ways -- look at Mark Parrish with the Minnesota Wild -- he didn't perform this past year as they would have liked so he was not picked up -- they needed the salray cap space -- so they just paid him pennies on the dollar for the rest of his contract and waved good bye to him and kinda said don't let the door hit you in the butt on the way out......

Hockey isn't on any major televison network, regularly -- if you don't get Versus or buy Center Ice on your satellite package you don't see many games on television.

Of course we hardy Minnesotans fill that Excel Center to capacity every game and pay huge to do that, I think the owners make more from us that way -- I pay darn near 15,000 for my 4 season seats and they ain't in the prime section either:-)

My comment to being underpaid came from comparing the sports. Granted they all have skilled athletes, however hockey players have to have skills beyound what is required of the other sports -- they need to do this while on a very thin blade--- I think they are the highest caliber of athlete yet they are paid the least and I realize that part of that comes from lack of television income and not being a nationally recognized sport that every kid can be introduced too.

Think maybe I'm into hockey just a tad??? I am a 61 year old hockey broad, of Finnish and Russian decent raised in Canada and transplanted to Minnesota -- what else is there, eh?

who works for 50 years?

If you start working full-time at 21 like most of us & retire at 71, that's 50 years. I'm guessing any of us under the age of 40 will have to work until 71 or so the way social security is running. Plus, some people start working full-time before the age of 21.

So you point out that one guy needs to work 50 years to make as much as another guy does in 3 1/2 years, and that we should feel sorry for the later individaul? I'm assuming that the football player has the option of making a living at something for the other 46 1/2 years of his life.

Yes, I feel sorry for anyone (football player, police officer, fire-fighter, war veteran) who is permanently injured or permanently suffering due to a work-related incident. $2.7 million is a lot a money, but it doesn't mean an NFL player will be rich for the rest of his life. financially well off ? Yes. upper middle class ? probably but not rich unless he is one of the few who is able land a job paying good money after his NFL career has ended.

First, if you are depending on Social Security for your retirement, you will be working forever, or living out your "golden years" eating dog food.

Second, professional athletes are selling a "product". This product is their skills and ability. They get paid what the market thinks the product is worth.

I would reserve my sympathy of High School and College athletes, who get there knees blown out before they ever see a pay day. Even then, it comes down to a personal choice. If you don't like the odds, choose another career path.

Footbvall players, who are basically entertainers, are men playing a boys' game for a whole lot of money. Police, firefighters, soldiers, are necessary and valuable cogs that make the society liveable. I don't see how one can equate their job related injuries. You also seem to be of the mind that we pay players enough money in 3 1/2 years so that they can retire at age 24-25 and live in the lap of luxury until they die in their 80's. They have another 50 years left, which is approxiamtely two thirds of their life, and 90% of their adult life; tell them to go out and get a job. Most players are not wheelchair bound after retirement, there are plenty of jobs which they're capable. No degree? Who's fault is that? They had a shot a free ride for four years somewhere; they should of taken advantage of it. Besides, they could invest a little of all that cash in going back and actually getting an education so they are ready for life after football.