This is more for NFL players then anyone else because they have a horrible union which leads to this problem:
disgruntled athletes and contract negotiations.

This year Sheldon Brown, cornerback for the Eagles, takes the stage. He is starting the 3rd year of a 6 year deal
and now he wants a new contract or a trade. He claims he has outperformed his present contract and deserves
a new deal to bring him up to a pay level equal to his peers.

Here is the reasons I get aggravated at these selfish pretty boys and agree with the owners and wouldn't give them
an extra dime.

He says he's outperformed his contract: What the hell does that mean? When he signed the contract, he signed in good faith, that
he would play the game to the best of his ability, in return the team would pay him millions of dollars. How do you outperform your best?

He signed a 6 year deal: The reason NFL players sign these long term deals is because NFL contracts are not guaranteed. A long
term deal gives the players a hefty signing bonus with large payouts in the early years. Players wishing to renegotiate a contract
conveniently forget about the bonus.

Underachieve or injury: If the players don't perform to a level they have in previous years will they offer to give money back?
If they are hurt they still expect to get paid even if the injury wasn't game related. Ever hear of a player asking for a new deal with less
money because he had a bad year?

Players always expect the owners to give into their demands and give them more money yet will offer nothing back. They will also take their
contract problems public in hopes of shaming the team to give into their demands. I say enough, you signed a 6 year deal, honor the freaking
deal and play football.

This is the #1 reason I hate sports!  Rewarding this ridiculous behavior just to win a dumb game; it's appalling. 

Kind of hard to defend, but especially in the NFL, where contracts aren't guaranteed and players are more "shackled", it's somewhat understandable that players will gripe because not every player gets those ludicrous signing bonuses that are used as examples.  Even the NHL has a bit of a case because it is extremely rare for athletes not named Gretzky or Lemieux to get multi-year contracts worth 8 figures.

I hate hearing about contract negotiations, especially to find out the demands of the players and how what they already make in one year could feed a small country! 

As much as I love sports, our professional athletes are the greediest human beings alive. I don't think anyone ever needs to make millions playing a sport....what happened to "the love of the game"? Do these guys all really need 5 or 6 homes and all that bling? 

Why can't people be happy to make a very good living (say, $500,000 a yr) doing what they love?  Why not give some of those millions to hungry children or make the world a better place with it?  Think of all the people we have starving in our own country, giving these players multi million dollar contracts is just slapping those people in the face.

I agree with ladybug, rewarding this kind of behavior just makes them even bigger monsters.

Instead of bailing out any more banks, we should really take a closer look at what these guys are earning and put caps on it!

Signed,
Living in A Dream World

You can't really do that though because it's basically a private enterprise and as long as fans continue to support the game, the stars will continue to get the big fat contracts.  Although you could make an argument that if fans are ponying up the tax money to build new stadiums, the owners need to exact a bit of responsibility in paycheck giveouts...hmmm.

I don't get why people blame the players. It is like screaming at a clerk for the policies of the corporation.

I don't get why people blame the players. It is like screaming at a clerk for the policies of the corporation.


I've got no problem with the players making megabucks. Hell, if some moron is willing to them 8 million a year to play a sport
then more power to them. I do however, have a problem with that same player who signs a 6 year 48 million dollar contract
then after 2 years says it isn't enough, rework the deal and give me more money.

I've got no problem with the players making megabucks. Hell, if some moron is willing to them 8 million a year to play a sport
then more power to them. I do however, have a problem with that same player who signs a 6 year 48 million dollar contract
then after 2 years says it isn't enough, rework the deal and give me more money.


I think it's the way the NFL contracts are set up, basically only the first couple of years are guaranteed and the rest are performance based, and the team is pretty much allowed to cut any player it wants at any time.  I don't think they have "no-trade" clauses like in baseball.  Basically the player has to be his own advocate in the NFL or else he gets screwed, particularly since all the monetary power is biased towards the owners and the league.  The NFL player has the least negotiating power of any major sports professional with the current collective bargaining agreement.

I've got no problem with the players making megabucks. Hell, if some moron is willing to them 8 million a year to play a sport
then more power to them. I do however, have a problem with that same player who signs a 6 year 48 million dollar contract
then after 2 years says it isn't enough, rework the deal and give me more money.


No problem there.  If they want to ask, and they think they can get it why blame them.  I am more interested in what they do with that kinda of money after they get it, though that isn't really our business.  I am more outraged at the college coaches making millions, money coming out of the schools coffers, money that could be used to defray the cost of college tuition.  I never hear that addressed.