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In the article, it is revealed that the average NFL salary had jumped by 25% over the past 12 months to $162,000 per annum, a figure that included pro-rated bonuses and signing fees.
The highest paid player in the league at that time, according to the paper, was Houston quarterback Warren Moon who took home $200,000 a year in annual salaries which was topped up to $1.1 million a year when his $4.5 million signing bonus was factored in.
Other players who were raking in the money back then were Lawrence Taylor of the New York Giants and Joe Montana of San Francisco.
In 2022 though, the money earned by the superstars of 1985 would look like chump change. The average salary of an NFL player this season is $2.7 million, a figure that rises to $49.4 million for the league’s Top 10 quarterbacks.
It’s an amount of money that is unimaginable for many of us, who could only dream of raking in a fraction of it if we got exceptionally lucky with the NFL odds, especially when predicting the + 9 point spread between the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers.
So how do the players of today go about spending all that money that’s lying about in their bank accounts? Read on to find out.
© Can Stock Photo / photocreo
Darnell Dockett’s Gator-ade…
41-year-old Darnell Dockett had 10 successful years playing defensive end for the Arizona Cardinals, earning an estimated $54.5 million in the process. In 2011 Dockett decided to buy something out of the ordinary, a baby alligator.
Having seemingly run out of ordinary ways to spend his cash, Dockett decided the best course of action was to purchase a dangerous pet. The tiny gator who he named Nino would be joined by a sister called Honey in 2014.
The terrifying animals have grown up in to real monsters, with a recent picture snapped by the press showing the former Cardinals star straddling the 500 pound Nino. It seems as though Dockett’s time at Florida State University really left an impression on him…
(Darnell Dockett shows Vice his penchant for exotic and, quite frankly, terrifying animals.)
Legs Eleven Terrell Owens
Terell Owens is a 5 time First Team All-Pro, a 6 time Pro Bowler and 3 time NFL receiving touchdowns leader. He also made it into the NFL 200’s All-Decade Team and the San Francisco 49ers Hall of Fame.
You’d think then, that he’d be pretty content with his achievements and just be happy to enjoy his retirement, but that was not the case. Owens fancied himself as a businessman, taking the somewhat bizarre decision to purchase an Alabama Bingo Hall.
The venture cost him $2 million and returned him a big fat pile of nothing as the planned business contravened Alabama law.
Rob Gronkowski’s American Pie House
33-year-old tight end Rob Gronkowski has had a career to be rightly proud of, teaming up with Tom Brady to obliterate everything that stood before them over a ten year period of dominance.
The record setting receiver and blocker decided to spend some of his hard earned cash on a $1.6 million, 4,781 square foot mansion at the Westshore Yacht Club, Tampa Bay.
The luxurious mansion looks like the stereotypical party house you would see in the movies, and is sure to have seen some amount of partying by Gronkowski and his teammates down the years.
(A peek behind the door of Rob Gronkowski’s Tampa Bay mansion.)
Warren Sapp Bought Everything!
Throughout 12 years playing with the Tampa Bay Buccanneers and the Oakland Raiders, Warren Sapp made an estimated $40 million in career earnings. In 2012 it was revealed though that the former NFL superstar was in the hole for $6.7 million!
He managed that by frivolously frittering away his cash at any and every opportunity. At one point his home contained 240 pairs of Nike sneakers, dozens of high end watches, the cheapest of which was worth $1,500 and a painting that set the star back a million dollars, everything to have a high level fashion style !
He also spent big on a pair of boxing gloves autographed by Muhammed Ali and a custom bearskin rug.
The Arian Foster Segue
Bobby Feeno, or the artist formerly known as Arian Foster to me and you was famous for his Namaste bow which he would perform every time he scored a touchdown.
He is now famous for his music, which was documented in the docuseries Becoming Bobby Feeno which showed him signing a record deal with LeBron James’ record label.
During his football career though, Foster developed a reputation of looking out for his teammates. The best example of which was when he bought Segways for the whole offensive line of the Houston Texans.
According to Foster, his teammates had looked on jealously as he moved about on his own Segway so he decided to cut them in on the action!
