Recent years have seen a boom period for football stars, as they have raked in huge salaries seasons after season. Yet, 2020 is likely to be remembered for being the year in which some of the NFL’s players suffered a severe setback to their wealth.
Which players are going to suffer the most financially due to the Covid-19 pandemics and its effects? We can probably best assess this by looking at the main groups of player affected.
Out of Contract Players
The group of players who are most vulnerable to the effects of this financial crisis are those who are out of contract right now. If we take a look at the top free agents list, we can see Earl Thomas, Larry Warford, and Eric Reid among them.
Finding a new team is never easy, but it is sure to be even more difficult in the current situation. It is easy to imagine some players deciding to retire early because of the effects of the pandemic, or having to accept a lower salary than would otherwise have been the case.
This might not seem like a big deal, as most of these players have earned big salaries earlier in their career, but it is a short career in football and every year counts when it comes to saving for the rest of their lives.
The situation could be even more drastic for young players looking to make the switch from college football to a professional career. As always, the best talent will be snapped up but lots of players could be lost to the game and need to seek alternative employment due to the pandemic.
Players Who Opt Out
Dozens of players have opted out of the 2020 NFL season, mainly due to fears about becoming infected and potentially passing on the disease to others. Damien Williams is among the examples of those who are in this situation.
The Kansas City Chiefs running back had a superb performance in the Super Bowl LIV game against the San Francisco 49ers, becoming the first player to rush at least 100 yards and also get a rushing and receiving touchdown in the NFL showpiece game.
Yet, it was revealed just a few months later that he was opting out of the current season due to the fact that his mother had been diagnosed with stage IV cancer. We can see the potential effects of this decision if we look at his contract details online.
In 2018, he signed a 2-year deal with a $1.6 million signing bonus and an average annual salary of $2.55 million. When he returns to the game, he will be near the end of his contract and there must be some doubts about his ability to pick up where he left off after so long out of the game. Will he be able to get as big a contract as his last one?
Players Nearing the End of Their Contracts
Getting to the end of a contract is always a difficult time for players, as any sort of serious injury or loss of form could mean that they find it difficult to get a good contract for the future. If you are looking for NFL odds moneyline by BetAmerica, then bear in mind the extra effort players in this situation put in.
Among the NFL stars in this situation is Philip Rivers. The Indianapolis Colts quarterback signed a one year deal early in 2020 that is worth $25 million. At 38 years old he doesn’t have a lot of big contracts left in him and any long lay-off could have a major effect on his future wealth.
Mitchell Trubisky was the second overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft but his $29 million contract with the Chicago Bears is now in its last year. The quarterback started the current season opener slowly and will know that the current situation is far from ideal in terms of getting another bumper deal.
Time will tell how big the effect is on NFL players’ wealth, but it seems clear that many of them will lost out on future contracts due to the current situation.
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