Quote:
Originally posted by LB1914
People tend to forget that many contracts in the NFL are not guaranteed, especially not for benchwarmers or those on the practice squad. If Lebron James tears his ACL tomorrow he will still get paid. However, many NFL players do not have that luxury.
You also have to remember that many NFLers try to keep up with a certain lifestyle. There are more broke or average former NFL players out there than people realize. A person can make $300,000 one year and get cut from the team the next. Meanwhile, that person probably bought cars, clothes, houses, and other stuff while they were making that $300,000. A lot of people that only played a year or two in the pros just end up getting regular jobs, so although they may have a "unique" experience in many cases they are not going to end up set for life. Every now and then you may get those that invested their money wisely, but if all of your teammates are wearing new suits every day, switching up cars, taking trips, and stuff like that you are more likely to fall into that trap. Pro athletes have bills too, they are just much higher than most of ours. Hell, a couple of NBA players were talking about being broke back when they had the strike going and we know most of them making substantial amounts of money each year.
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So true. I know personally of a young guy who has been in and out of the NFL. Just because you get a contract does not mean you will play or stay with them throughout the whole season. You have to watch your money and have a alternative plan. After one season, my friend ended up moving back into his mother's home with his girlfriend and their kids.