Shame on the NFL

**SABURZFAN** · 02-04-2007, 04:34 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

mike webster was another tragic story.

**Night Train** · 02-04-2007, 04:48 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

The NFL is too busy trying to get rid of small market teams and make more $$. They don't have time for retirement plans.

They've had poor leadership for years, despite all the publicity stating otherwise.

**Mitchy moo** · 02-04-2007, 06:22 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Originally posted by Night Train

The NFL is too busy trying to get rid of small market teams and make more $$. They don't have time for retirement plans.

They've had poor leadership for years, despite all the publicity stating otherwise.

Do you mean by bringing billions in tv contract revenues? Money fixes most business problems but this is the player's union fault, no one else to blame.

You have players with some college education representing themselves against high priced ivy league genius lawyers that can pencil you out of things without you even knowing it. The players need real representation in their next go around and people who are willing to tgive less money for the small percentage of bigger money stars and distribute it throughout the pension, health, and general welfare programs the NFL really needs.

$25,000 a year retirement pension is ~$2,080 a month, which is about one hour of Michael "ron mexico" Vicks salary.

**BillsFever21** · 02-04-2007, 07:47 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

I don't feel bad for them and their 25k pension a year. Most of them made about 25+ million from the game during their career.

For baseball players getting 175k this is crazy. They have their 100 million dollar guranteed contracts and then when they retire they pull in a cool 175k a year.

I don't have any pension where I work for when I retire(if I'm lucky) at 65+ years old and most of them will make more in 1 season of football then I will my entire life. They work for 10 years and we have to work for 50 years.

When we can finally retire when we're just about dead we won't be getting 24k a year in social security after paying in thousands a year our entire life.

I feel so bad for them and their fat bank accounts and mansions and only getting their 24k of pension a year. They don't even need it after all the money they made.

The ones that are complaining the most are probably the crackheads that spent most of their money on hookers, strippers and cocaine/crack cocaine during their career and now they could use the money.

**Night Train** · 02-04-2007, 09:00 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Originally posted by BillsFever21

I don't feel bad for them and their 25k pension a year. Most of them made about 25+ million from the game during their career.

Dead wrong

The big $$ didn't show up until the 1970's and the first big contracts with NBC, CBS and eventually ABC and Monday Night Football. Until then, most didn't make 6 figures and held down 2nd jobs during the off-season. I remember seeing Wray Carlton working next to my Aunt at a Sears clothing counter. A couple of the Bills lived near me in tiny houses and drove old cars.

How hard is it for owners to each pool some $$ and offer these guys some medical help and a slightly better pension ? It's not.

We're not talking about Michael Irvin getting some extra 8 ball $$. We're talking about players of all periods that can't pay medical bills from injuries sustained while playing in the NFL and a meager pension increase.

Waving a broad brush and stating they're all millionaires is beyond silly. I understand the risks as well as anyone, in relation to the reward. Some folks seriously overestimate the reward end.

**Michael82** · 02-04-2007, 09:08 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Originally posted by Night Train

Dead wrong

The big $$ didn't show up until the 1970's and the first big contracts with NBC, CBS and eventually ABC and Monday Night Football. Until then, most didn't make 6 figures and held down 2nd jobs during the off-season. I remember seeing Wray Carlton working next to my Aunt at a Sears clothing counter. A couple of the Bills lived near me in tiny houses and drove old cars.

How hard is it for owners to each pool some $$ and offer these guys some medical help and a slightly better pension ? It's not.

We're not talking about Michael Irvin getting some extra 8 ball $$. We're talking about players of all periods that can't pay medical bills from injuries sustained while playing in the NFL and a meager pension increase.

Waving a broad brush and stating they're all millionaires is beyond silly. I understand the risks as well as anyone, in relation to the reward. Some folks seriously overestimate the reward end.

Great post!

**kgun12** · 02-04-2007, 09:45 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Originally posted by BillsFever21

I don't feel bad for them and their 25k pension a year. Most of them made about 25+ million from the game during their career.

For baseball players getting 175k this is crazy. They have their 100 million dollar guranteed contracts and then when they retire they pull in a cool 175k a year.

I don't have any pension where I work for when I retire(if I'm lucky) at 65+ years old and most of them will make more in 1 season of football then I will my entire life. They work for 10 years and we have to work for 50 years.

When we can finally retire when we're just about dead we won't be getting 24k a year in social security after paying in thousands a year our entire life.

I feel so bad for them and their fat bank accounts and mansions and only getting their 24k of pension a year. They don't even need it after all the money they made.

The ones that are complaining the most are probably the crackheads that spent most of their money on hookers, strippers and cocaine/crack cocaine during their career and now they could use the money.

You are very wrong my friend! Alot of these players only players 4-5 years, and there salaries were horrible! Check out the article below, here is a clip;

And in real dollar terms, salary expenditures have risen even faster than television revenue. The $23,000 average player salary in 1970 (worth some $115,000 in today's dollars), was one-twelfth the current $1.4 million average.

http://www.forbes.com/2006/12/22/mvp-nfl-bargain-biz-cx_tvr_1222nflmvp_print.html

**HHURRICANE** · 02-04-2007, 09:54 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Originally posted by BillsFever21

I don't feel bad for them and their 25k pension a year. Most of them made about 25+ million from the game during their career.

For baseball players getting 175k this is crazy. They have their 100 million dollar guranteed contracts and then when they retire they pull in a cool 175k a year.

I don't have any pension where I work for when I retire(if I'm lucky) at 65+ years old and most of them will make more in 1 season of football then I will my entire life. They work for 10 years and we have to work for 50 years.

When we can finally retire when we're just about dead we won't be getting 24k a year in social security after paying in thousands a year our entire life.

I feel so bad for them and their fat bank accounts and mansions and only getting their 24k of pension a year. They don't even need it after all the money they made.

The ones that are complaining the most are probably the crackheads that spent most of their money on hookers, strippers and cocaine/crack cocaine during their career and now they could use the money.

????????????????????

Dude, you've been on a tear this week. Our own Conrad Dobler is currently getting ****ed by the NFL. They refused him diability even though he walks around with a cane. This is about the leagues greed. PERIOD.

**YardRat** · 02-04-2007, 10:05 AM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Gene Upshaw is a tool, period, IMO but face the fact...he gets paid to represent the current membership. The pension shortfall for the older players is primarily the fault of the leadership of the union during their era.

Having said that, if the membership had any conscience at all they'd be willing to give concessions for current players who really are making big money and offset that for better pensions, health care, disability etc for the guys that actually put the league on the map and in every home in the country.

But we all know that's not how collective bargaining units work in today's world. It's really all about 'me', not 'us'.

**ParanoidAndroid** · 02-04-2007, 12:08 PM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Those poor, poor NFL players.
I mean, making just a few thousand more than a retiring nurse, policeman, fireman, or teacher. That's outrage!
Especially since they gave 10 years of their lives to playing a sport for a living.
I mean, all those civil servants only give 30 years of their lives working their asses off. Not only that, they make less than 10% on an NFL player's salary.
Why should they deserve a pension if they are worth so little in the first place.
I know this is about the league's greed, but tell me how this is different than any other corporation or government.

**BillsFever21** · 02-04-2007, 04:26 PM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Of course I realize the players of 40 years ago didn't make that kind of money. They should get more but the players of this era have no reason to complain.

There are also many regular workers of the workforce from 30 years ago who only made about 8k a year with bad backs,ect, from doing tough work at their jobs. People with heavy lifting jobs and crap like that.

Sure the players of 30 years ago are getting screwed but they knew the risk when they joined football. And for that era of life they were playing in they made a good salary. Not like the ones in this era but they made a hell of a lot more then your average person back then.

There are many older Americans that worked physical jobs and made 1/3 of that money. And like others said, Gene Upshaw isn't responsible for the players from 30 years ago.

Your pension should be based on how much you made during your career. Does somebody like Peyton Manning deserve a huge pension when he retires?

If the players didn't make so much damn money in this era of football maybe they could raise the pensions and pool some of that money together for the older players that built the foundation before them.

**BillsFever21** · 02-04-2007, 04:30 PM

Re: Shame on the NFL

And what about college football players that never made the NFL and will never see the big bucks. They put their bodies on the line for 4 years and some of them suffered injuries that will hurt them the rest of their lives. They aren't getting anything at all.

And the players of this era that will only play for 4 years or so they will still make a good chunk of change in that 4 years. They will make more in them 4 years as the average person making 40-50k a year will in their lifetime.

**Typ0** · 02-04-2007, 04:37 PM

Re: Shame on the NFL

Let them complain. They look like ******s for not negotiating better terms during their careers and whiners for complaining about it now.

I don't see the guys who built the empire state building complaining about not having a decent pension. My dad walked into a nuclear reactor got cancer and died( maybe not related who knows). Point being those are the breaks...the people that build industries are rarely compensated and the ones that come after them reap the rewards. Too bad you old farts with bad knees.

**Night Train** · 02-04-2007, 04:41 PM

Re: Shame on the NFL

You're right. The NFL shouldn't support them despite their injuries and direct problems related to football.

THEY SHOULD JUST GO ON MEDICADE, WELFARE AND SOCIAL SERVICES. THAT WAY, WE THE MILLIONAIRE TAXPAYERS CAN SUPPORT THEM !!!

BRILLIANT !!!!

Shame on the NFL

Shame on the NFL

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