PLAYER SALARY
White, Roddy $12,007,280
Ryan, Matt $7,907,280
Babineaux, Jonathan $6,007,280
Baker, Sam $5,127,280
Abraham, John $5,007,280
Davis, Chauncey $5,007,280
Gonzalez, Tony $4,507,280
Jenkins, Michael $4,507,280
Peterson, Mike $3,507,280
Mughelli, Ovie $2,507,280
Koenen, Michael $2,490,280
Peelle, Justin $2,287,280
Redman, Chris $1,757,280
Elam, Jason $1,707,280
Williams, Brian (CB) $1,600,000
Clabo, Tyson $1,552,280
Dahl, Harvey $1,552,280
Moore, William $1,410,000
McClure, Todd $1,407,280
Booker, Marty $1,400,000
Coleman, Erik $1,257,280
Jerry, Peria $1,200,000
Romberg, Brett $1,057,280
Hill, Tye $1,044,280
Finneran, Brian $1,007,280
Turner, Michael $1,007,280
Owens, Christopher $998,702
Wire, Coy $877,280
Schneck, Mike $852,280
Anderson, Jamaal $773,530
Sidbury, Lawrence $754,900
Gilbert, Tony $667,280
Haynes, Verron $624,680
Norwood, Jerious $542,280
Ojinnaka, Quinn $542,280
Svitek, Will $542,280
Fudge, Jamaal $535,000
Reynolds, Garrett $490,600
Blalock, Justin $467,280
Harris, Antoine $467,280
Houston, Chris $467,280
Johnson, Thomas $467,280
Lewis, Trey $467,280
Nicholas, Stephen $467,280
Snelling, Jason $467,280
Lofton, Curtis $452,280
Biermann, Kroy $392,280
DeCoud, Thomas $392,280
Douglas, Harry $392,280
Grimes, Brent $392,280
Jackson, Chevis $392,280
Weems, Eric $392,280
Wilson, John $327,500
Zinger, Keith $317,280
Walker, Vance $310,000

Average Salary $1,728,417

Can’t blame anyone but themselves for poor lifestyle choices and improper investment of their gains. Look at players like Young (Steve, not Vince), who instead of living the massive, opulent, “bling” if you will, lifestyle, he invested and used his intelligence with his money. They guy is a near billionaire now.

And without the owners the elite athletes would be P.E. teachers in Buffalo.

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Excellent post, beauregard, but what about the the other part of this….the fans? Without us, and our blind devotion, neither of them have a leg to stand on. We’re just fed up, and we want this settled…yesterday!

Any true fan of the NFL realizes that the vast majority of players in the league are making lawyer and doctor money, not lotto jackpot money. For this fan, the only sympathy I have for those players, though, is for those who don’t receive sound financial planning advice from their agents/accountants/friends, and/or those who suffer career-ending injuries before getting the chance to play at least one full season.

I made some stupid decisions with my money in my late teens and early twenties that took years to recover from, and I had nowhere near the money that the 53rd man on an NFL roster makes. There’s a lot of focus on rookie wage scales, retired player health insurance, etc, but IMHO, one of the most important things that should be included in a new CBA is a mandatory retirement savings plan that players would have to contribute to for their own life after football. It doesn’t have to be a league-wide pool, but if these players have such a hard time paying their bills after they’re out of the league, maybe the league and/or the union should make sure that when the young, hard-headed kids coming into the league set aside some money for the future before they blow it all on clothes, cars, and houses.

It could be handled much like state-required auto insurance. I don’t know if it’s the same in other states, but in Ohio, you can either carry a minimum level of liability insurance, or you can have a certain amount of cash set aside in an account that ensures you can handle your obligations in the event of an accident. A player who gets a huge rookie signing bonus could bypass the required savings plan by setting aside a lump sum off the top of his bonus. A player who gets no guaranteed money and makes league minimum can have a percentage of his games checks withheld, just like Social Security (except it’d actually be accruing interest and still be there for him when he retires). That way, players who only last 2-3 seasons at “low” salaries still have some money available to them while they go back to school, look for a new job, etc.

It adds up to a lifetime of medical problems and a significantly shortened lifespan. It also adds up to paying high tax rates to subsidize ah well … never mind.

NFL players choose to play football — they are not forced to risk lifetimes of medical problems and shrotened lifespans. Theyre fortunate to have the opportinity to make they money they do. Perhaps if so many of these young men chose to be more frugal with the significant amounts of money they make, they would realize how truly fortunate they are.

You speak for every real NFL football fan in the United States. Maybe when the “children” haggling about their cut of the billions finally realize that they’ll do a deal and NFL life will get back to normal for all of us.

Every time a guy has to pay $9 for a hot dog at a game, and his kid wants a shirt that costs $50, and a day at the stadium is about the same as a mortgage payment — people are going to take a second look at what the owners are making AND what the players are making.

With few exceptions it’s a lot more than the guy with the $9 hot dog.

I will never side with the players, except on a few points. I think the owners need to pony up on medical benefits for former players more. But even with that, the NFLPA needs to put up a good portion too.

If there is a work stoppage, who is it going to affect more? The owners have the deep pockets. Sure Peyton and Brady would be hurting, but the other 1500 players might feel a bit of a financial pinch. Cut a deal guys.

Roddy White… do you know how much you paid for your last gallon of gasoline?

I’m betting you didn’t even look at the price.
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Hell, he probably didn’t even pump it. He probably sent someone else down to fill the cars.

Whenever one of these spoiled athletes opens their mouths, it just shows how clueless they really are. I mean, you can’t really blame them, because they’ve been sheltered ever since they showed the slightest inkling of talent…at about age 6-10.

So, for the last 12+ years, they’ve had absolutely NO responsibilities and no consequences. That’s why this union has NO CLUE how to handle this labor dispute. It’s filled with a ton of over-privileged idiots who haven’t a clue what the world is really like. They’ve been waiting since they were teenagers to hit this payday, and they feel entitled to it because mommy and daddy (when he was around) have been pounding it into their heads since they first sprouted hair down there.

“These owners should pay the players whatever they have to because without elite athletes they own large empty future demolition sites.”

“And without the owners the elite athletes would be P.E. teachers in Buffalo.”

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Not necessarily true.
Without players, you have no league.
Without owners, you have, well, the Green Bay Packers.

Wake up and smell the bacon, Roddy. I’m 26 years old and haven’t made a half million yet in my lifetime. I know plenty of other people haven’t either. The first contract any player signs is generally worth more than that right? So no matter what an NFL player is generally coming out well ahead of the average American in terms of opportunity when their NFL career ends.

I’m betting you didn’t even look at the price.

It’s not anyone else’s fault if certain pro athletes don’t appreciate how short their careers are and spend like drunken sailors on shore leave while the fat checks are coming in.

I’m guessing more than half of NFL players have gross incomes that in the seven figures during their careers.

That’s close enough to a millionaire for most people.

It will take me over 20 years to get close to that.

According to that errant thought you’ve posted, any professional that can do something someone else cant should be paid handsomely. Do you think you should make millions because people cant pump gas as good as you?

It adds up to a lifetime of medical problems and a significantly shortened lifespan. It also adds up to paying high tax rates to subsidize ah well … never mind.

You must have missed it, they ARE being paid for their skills.

“Why not pay them for their unique skills? I can’t perform on an NFL level. The UFL players can’t perform on an NFL level. These owners should pay the players whatever they have to because without elite athletes they own large empty future demolition sites.”

No, because i would rather watch a UFL player make $200,000 b/c they still do things i can’t, vs. watch somebody bitch about a salary which is roughly equivalent to 10 years of me working at a league minimum.

JUST LOOK AT JAMARCUS RUSSELL, his rookie payscale is slated to be a top QB in the league, but he is NOT EVEN IN THE LEAGUE ANYMORE.