Article Last Updated: 2/05/2006 07:43 AM
THEY ARE
It never has made much sense, really, how the NFL, the most lucrative of all sports leagues, raking in billions and always scrambling to grab another nickel, offers the sorriest retirement benefits in major team sports.
For playing through pain (for the good of the organization), surrendering body parts (for the good of the organization) and taking years off their life (for the good of the game), it's not unusual come away with less than $2,000 per month in retirement.
Then there is the astronomical cost of medical care for those whose wounds go unhealed.
How is it that so few of the spoils go to those in greatest need?
There are thousands of horror stories like those reported by colleague Dave Newhouse in today's newspaper (News 1). Endless sad tales of yesterday's heroes trapped in misery, coldly neglected by the guardians of the game.Some have trouble walking. Others have trouble sleeping. Some have undergone multiple surgeries. Others have committed suicide.
Some, unable to shed the excess weight, become cardiovascular nightmares.
Nearly all need more money than that provided by their pension — which is vastly inferior to those of Major League Baseball and the NBA.
ESPN's "Outside the Lines" tackled the subject the other day, speaking to several retirees, none of whom is comfortable in retirement. Former
He gets $992 per month.
A baseball player with a similar career span who collects at age 45 would get about $6,000 per month.
If DeLamielleure, who played 13 seasons and entered the Hall of Fame in 2003, had waited until he was 55, he would have gotten about $2,200 per month, according to ESPN.
If former
A baseball player with a similar career, Cal Ripken Jr., stands to collect at age 62 about $160,000.
"It's the deep, dark secret nobody wants to talk about," Raiders Hall of Famer Howie Long tells the Charlotte Observer.
"Embarrassing," says Marcus Allen, another Hall of Famer.
Another Hall of Famer, Deacon Jones, is so turned off by the league's indifference he no longer attends induction ceremonies in Canton, Ohio.
The upside is Jones saves money on travel and accommodations. Yes, NFL Hall of Famers, unlike those in other sports, have to pay their own way to the yearly gatherings.
Understand, the NFL stands to make about $25 billion over the next eight years — off TV alone. Additional billions come from sales of tickets, apparel and memorabilia.
The NFL is one of the biggest cash cows in American history, awash in profits, little of which makes it way to those who served the league during its greatest growth.
When retired players turn to the NFL Players Association director Gene Upshaw, someone with access to the system, someone who should understand, he responds by firmly putting them in their place.
Which, apparently, is as far away from the league's money as possible.
"The bottom line is I don't work for them," Upshaw tells the Observer. "They don't hire me, and they can't fire me. They can complain about me all day long. They can have their opinion. But the active players have the vote. That's who pays my salary."
Upshaw reportedly is paid $3 million per year.
Scripps Howard News Service recently released a study relating obese former NFL players to premature death. In the face of evidence powerful and comprehensive, the league shrugged and resumed counting its money.
"The issue of obesity in our society transcends sports and must be dealt with in a comprehensive, responsible way," says Greg Aiello, NFL vice president of public relations. "This media survey contributes nothing."
In other words, take your months of painstaking research into thousands of dead former football players and shove it.
If it's appalling insensitivity you seek, you'll find it in the NFL. If astounding arrogance turns you on, bingo. The NFL has your back.
The temptation is to compare these greedy scoundrels to those who feed off the weak at the bottom of the boxing world. But the NFL is worse, because dollars are more plentiful. And because it exploits with a collective smirk, daring anyone to effect change.
The league continues to get away with this because nobody with clout, including Upshaw, is bold enough to challenge the mighty NFL beast. Those who might be able to generate change are too busy getting theirs.
How do these people sleep at night? On pillows stuffed with cash.
Monte
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