Brewster's Millions

I grew up in the northwestern suburbs of Chicago.  Because of that fact I have an ingrained habit of following what happens with the local sports teams, even though I don't live there anymore.  So I suppose in this day and age of highly paid sports figures it should come as no surprise that another one just signed an extremely lucrative contract.


Only today it did, because the normally tight fisted Chicago Bears organization went and signed an aging defensive end by the name of Julius Peppers to a 6 year $91.5 million dollar contract .  That's right, you heard me, $91.5 million, with $42 million of it guaranteed, because in football they can cut you at any time and, well, he is already 30 years old.  Considering the average shelf life of an NFL player is between 3 - 5 years, he's already played well past his average.  Now compare this to the payroll of the Pittsburgh Pirates, our local baseball team.  In 2009 their entire team payroll was $25,197,000. 

Don't get me wrong, I like football.  I coached football.  I got to see several players from this area including one who I knew get drafted into the NFL.  It takes a lot of hard work, dedication, athleticism and an inner drive.  Very few players make it, even among those who were at the peak of their game in college.  But do you mean to tell me this team couldn't find someone, even if they were considered just a notch below this guy, who would do the same job for say...$4 million a year?  How is that not good money?  When do we reach the point of over-saturation and say to ourselves "it's just a f*cking game."  He's not a heart surgeon, he's not a Nobel Prize winner, or a cancer researcher or any other profession you would care to name that can make a direct impact on people's lives.

So he will play for 2 or 3 more years.  He will collect a minimum of $42 million and anyone dumb enough to shell out for tickets or buy their merchandise or even watch the game with advertisements whose revenue goes to the NFL will have helped pay his salary.  In the end, if the team wins more and makes the playoffs, people will wind up saying it was money well spent.  I'm not sure it will have an impact on my life.  After all, Chicago went to the Super Bowl back in 2007, and I'm still waiting for my check.  The head coach of the team, Lovie Smith, flew down to this man's home to be there at the stroke of the hour he was available as a free agent.  Peppers was quoted as saying that the gesture is what swayed him to sign with the Bears.  Right!

The other 91.5 million reasons weren't a bad incentive either...