Dear Multi-Million Dollar "Free Agent" Crybabies: There's No Crying in Pro Football

Frank Bacus
Frank Bacus, Yahoo! Contributor Network
Feb 27, 2009 "Share your voice on Yahoo! websites. Start Here."
Albert Haynesworth, Jeff Saturday, Kurt Warner, Anquan Boldin... the list goes on and on. I mention these players because they are all free agents this year. They are all exceptional athletes and as far as I am concerned, they are all multi-million-dollar crybabies. These players can't hold a candle to the players like Deacon Jones, Rosie Greer, Mean Joe Green, Fran Tarkington, Dick Butkus and many more. In those days, players played for a team, not for themselves. When you think of those players, you immediately think of the team they played for. But what if a player has seven kids to think about? How can he not think about getting more than his $10M to $14M contract (depending on incentives etc.), he has his kids to think about, weh, weh, weh.

What about team loyalty? The Titans stuck with Albert when he was hurt, week in and week out and when was suspended, the coaches, players and fans were always supportive. Doesn't that account for something? Doesn't the fact that the coaches, line coaches, backfield coaches, QB coaches, special team coaches, that helped you hone your skills so you can demand your current salary and that has taken you to the skill level where you can negotiate for more money, don't they mean anything anymore? Or do the players think, they made the coaches better, and they had the natural ability to succeed in the NFL? Oh Contraire Monfrare

Team loyalty is a thing of the past. Gone are the days when players retired with the teams that signed them out of college. There is nothing wrong with getting the salary you deserve but it is a hard selling point in this day and time to convince anyone that a player is worth well upwards of $20M per year. If you can't take care of your family for life on $10M per year, even if you only played 1 year, then shame on you and your financial advisors. At the age of 20, you could bury $10M in the backyard and your family, even if you had 10 kids, would live in luxury for the rest of their lives. If the money didn't earn any interest, players would receive $200,000 a year for 50 years. The multi-million-dollar crybabies wouldn't have to work another day for the rest of their lives. But, if they have to go to another team and can get it, then they should get it, bull. "But what if they get hurt, or cut, or yaddi yaddi yadda?" Then do what every other American has to do. Lean on your education, get out there, and get a job. Ooops, you left college early for the money, and you bought a $10M dollar house, and two new cars etc. etc. etc. What will you do? Well, you ain't America's problem. You made your own bed, now sleep in it. Get your education, play football as long as you can, invest well, then go to work if it did not work out. There's no crying in pro football!

Published by Frank Bacus

A church leader for 20+ years. A 30 year music industry veteran. Booked, promoted, managed and/or produced some of the biggest names in the industry including Oscar, Grammy winners. A H.S. baseball head coac...  View profile

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  • Love is a 2 way street2/27/2009

    You can cry all you want as well Frank Bacus.
    The fact is there is no player loyalty or fan loyalty coming from the NFL. Its business.

    You act like the Titans stuck with Haynesworth because they were loyal to him.
    Bull malarkey. They stuck with him and stood behind him because he was their investment.

    When teams like the "morally superior" teams like the Colts release a player that has done so much for their organizations like Marvin Harrison... what sort of signal does that send to the players and the fans?

    If anyone is crying here, its the writer.
    The Colts, Polian, came out and said "The teams number 1 priority is Kelvin Hayden. What does that say to the 10 year veteran Jeff Saturday? He is their entire offensive line. We can draft a player with Hayden-comparable abilities for a fraction of the cost. But we are not going to draft a comparable Jeff Saturday.

    The Colts were nearly dead last in rushing and near the top in pass defense. Yet re-signing a corner was the num

  • Frank Bacus2/27/2009

    Hey Jon,
    Wow, my bad. I did get that from a sports reporters story. They were commenting on Free Agents and where they thought they would land. They mentioned Kurt and Anquan. By the way, Kurt is my favorite player in the pro's. The article was more about "stay where you are". I feel that he is one that will probably stay for his two years. I will check on Anquan. But the point of the story is more about crybabies in the NFL and he is one of the biggest, in my opinion. If I was in error, I was not in error in how I feel about players and the money they make, which, for the most part is way too much. I played in the old American Football Association which was basically semi=pro. I lived very comfortably on the money I made. I invested it well (no brag, just fact) and now I consult entertainers on how to handle their fame, fortune and success. Most good accountants can take $10,000 that an athlete does not need, ( in other words he has to forget about it for 10 years)invest it in

  • Jon Davis2/27/2009

    Re: Your credibility.

    Bouldin is NOT a free agent (2 more years on his contract).

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