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Jake Gniadek

Professor Ferrara

English 1001

26, April 2023

Are Athletes Overpaid?

Over the past few years, we have seen professional athletes receive huge contracts. In

July 2020, we saw one of the NFL’s most popular names Patrick Mahomes receive a contract

worth $503 million over the next 10 years. That is around $50 million a year for the player! This

is something football fans have never seen before. There will be debates for years that this is way

too much money for someone who just throws a football around for three hours once a week.

The thing is, there are many reasons why Mahomes got that big of a contract. There are also a

few players in all sports who will receive 10-year contracts and earn half a billion dollars. Most

players will sign contracts for three or four years, but Mahomes plans to stay with the Kansas

City Chiefs for the rest of his career. The huge contracts are given to the players who are the best

at what they do and are considered the best players in their sport. Professional athletes deserve

the amount of money they earn since viewership is so high, they have multiple ways to earn

revenue, and they go through many challenges few people think of.

We can all agree the NFL is the most watched and viewed sport in the US. While other

sports like soccer and basketball are growing in popularity and viewership, football will always

be king in this country. The Superbowl will always attract millions of viewers every single year.

What is smart about the Superbowl is even if you do not like football, you can look forward to

the halftime show. People also like to watch the commercials and then pick which one was their
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favorite. There is a reason it is so expensive to have a 30 second commercial on Superbowl

Sunday. In recent years, the NFL has been playing games on Christmas, but they are always

known for their Thanksgiving games. The most popular team, the Dallas Cowboys will always

play on Thanksgiving because they are one of the most popular sports teams in the world, and

the NFL sees this as a way to bring in views. The Cowboys quarterback, Dak Prescott, will

always be under the microscope because he is on the most popular team. Studies on ProQuest

have said, “According to the NFL, the Cowboys were featured in five of the 10 most-watched

games this season, including a Thanksgiving matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders on CBS

that averaged nearly 41 million viewers and was the biggest game of the season in terms of

ratings” (Flint). My family and I were a part of those 41 million viewers, as my dad is a

Cowboys fan, and we enjoy watching football. It makes sense that the Cowboys were featured in

so many of the most-watched games last season. Their fan base is massive, and it will keep

growing. According to my survey, when asked if they watch sports on a regular basis, 41.7%

said they watch sports every day, and 33.3% said they watch sports a couple of times a week. So

according to my survey, around 75% of respondents watch sports on a regular basis. In my

survey I also asked if they have attended a sporting event. This time, 33.3% said they attend very

often and 41.7% said they have attended a couple of times. Only 8.3% said they have never been

to a sporting event; this proves how popular and fun it can be watching a sporting event live.

This means that most respondents in my survey spent their own money on tickets, and even

bought merchandise and food at the stadium or arena, contributing to the team's wealth.
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While these athletes have contracts with their teams, they also have many ways to earn

money like their gameday salaries. Players step on the field to put on a show for their team and

fans. Depending on the sport they play, some players have more games than others. In the NBA

regular season, there are 82 games a season, while there are 17 games in the NFL regular season.

There is a lot of pressure that goes into games, and if a top player does not perform, the media

will start to hate. Injuries are also a key factor, because if a player's contract is not guaranteed,

they are not required to be paid while they are recovering. Another way players earn revenue is

endorsements off the field. Lebron James is a notable example of an athlete who is endorsed by

many companies. When people think of the NBA, Lebron James is the first name that comes to

mind. He has been dominating the league since 2003 and is still one of the best players today. In

my survey I asked if they had seen athletes they know in commercials. 58.3% of respondents

said they see them quite often in commercials and 25% said they see them in commercials

sometimes. This is around 83% of respondents. This proves that these players have huge roles in

these companies. Brett Knight of Forbes acknowledges that, “The Los Angeles Lakers forward
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would rank fifth on this list with his Nike deal alone; it pays the 37-year-old $32 million

annually. James jumped to PepsiCo last March after 17 years with Coca-Cola, becoming the face

of Mtn Dew Energy, and he started pitching a second label with the company in December as

part of a Ruffles campaign” (Knight). It makes sense how James’ net worth reached $1 billion

last year. With this he became the first active NBA player to become a billionaire. In many ways

it is deserved for the man who calls himself the “king,” but I see why some people will be angry

with how much James earns.

Many people will disagree and say that this is too much money for someone who runs

around for a few hours compared to important occupations like doctors, teachers, police officers

and more. While these athletes train every day to become the best version of themselves, the

same can be said about doctors. They go to school for many years and work extremely hard to

help and save lives. I was in the emergency room recently, and I know everyone who helped me

does not earn the amount of money they deserve. I was just one of the thousands of patients they

help every year. It is crazy the amount of money these players earn, but the team owners feel it is

appropriate. Money will keep being earned through viewership and endorsements, and the team

owners will invest the millions of dollars they have into these teams.

I understand that people who do not watch or play sports will get angry and act like being

an athlete is so easy. However, this is so far from the truth. While the top players make the large

contracts, there are many players who make the minimum, which is still a lot of money. The

thing is, there are also players who might not get picked up by a team and be without a job.

However, in my opinion, the most challenging aspect of being a professional athlete is injuries.

Some injuries can be minor; however, some can be career ending or even life-threatening. Eliza

O’Toole of EBSCO states, “To date, it has been shown that sports injuries in males and females
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differed by injury types and that females had a higher percentage of overuse injuries than

traumatic injuries, reverse for males” (O’Toole 100-101). We see many traumatic injuries in

sports, but the most common sport is football. I have read about many serious injuries about this.

I have read Believe, by Eric LeGrand. This was an autobiography about a former college football

player who aspired to go to the NFL, but he never could because of one injury. During a game,

he sustained a spine injury, and he was only able to move his head. He was later deemed

paralyzed, and his book was so inspiring on how he believed he could still live out his life. This

is a rare injury, but there are many cases we do not even hear about. Something we do not think

about in contact sports are brain injuries that can potentially last for the rest of these people’s

lives. The rate of concussions has risen, and any head injury is treated seriously, because if it is

not treated, their lives can be affected in the future. According to the Brain Injury Research

Institute, they researched, “Brain injuries cause more deaths than any other sports injury. In

football, brain injuries account for 65% to 95% of all fatalities. Football injuries associated with

the brain occur at the rate of one in every 5.5 games. In any given season, 10% of all college

players and 20% of all high school players sustain brain injuries” (Bailes). It is not just football

players who suffer from these injuries, it can be any contact sport like soccer, basketball, boxing

and more. Players in these sports do not wear helmets, but a clash of heads can potentially be

extremely dangerous and life changing. While many players can recover from injuries, many are

not as lucky, and their lives can be changed in a second.

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Everyone has questions about how athletes could spend all this money. As I stated earlier,

Lebron James is a billionaire. What could he do with his money? Sources have said that James

spends around $1.5 million on his body. This explains why he is still one of the best athletes in

the world at 38 years old. It is expected that he will have a nice house and nice vehicles, but there

are more important things he spends his earnings on. Keith Schneider of The New York Times

informs us, “The foundation’s latest and largest project is the $2.875 million it paid in December

to buy the Tangier, an entertainment and events center in Akron. Renovation of the 60,000-

square-foot building, renamed House 330, started in January, and is expected to be completed

next year. The project will provide training and jobs for students interested in careers in food

service, hospitality, management, maintenance, finance, and other professions” (Schneider).

James certainly did not have an easy childhood, just like the children and adults he is helping.

Helping these people is something he does not have to do, but he knows how important it is to

aid those in need. He wants everyone to have the best opportunities in life, and there is a reason

he is my favorite athlete.
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In conclusion, the amount of money athletes earn is insane, but it is worth it through the

high viewership and the risks they play through. There are many things they do off the court or

field that go unnoticed, and they are role models to a lot of people. They go through so much

criticism, and they must push through the tough times to be there for their teams. It is a lot easier

said than done being an athlete.

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Works Cited

Bailes. “What Is a Concussion?” What Is a Concussion? | Brain Injury Research Institute, 2023,

http://www.protectthebrain.org/Brain-Injury-Research/What-is-a-Concussion-

.aspx#:~:text=in%20the%20U.S.-

,10%25%20of%20all%20contact%20sport%20athletes%20sustain%20concussions%20yea

rly.,than%20any%20other%20sports%20injury.

Flint, Joe. “NFL Viewership Scores 10% Gain.” ProQuest, 13 Jan. 2022,

https://www.proquest.com/docview/2619095859?parentSessionId=jiqlgQ%2FSjUKU5A

9wHMJFnU278eAaTBHDsX9iCZ2Qe1c%3D. Accessed 26 Apr. 2023.

Knight, Brett. “The Most Marketable NBA All-Stars: Lebron, Durant and Curry Lead a $234

Million Endorsement Roster.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 14 Feb. 2022,

https://www.forbes.com/sites/brettknight/2022/02/11/the-most-marketable-nba-all-stars-

lebron-durant-and-curry-lead-a-234-million-endorsement-roster/?sh=1f3de35d40b7.

Macasero, Michael. “‘Lay off the Chips, Wine, Tequila... Get off the Couch and Work on Your

Free Throws!" - Skip Bayless Throws Major Shade at Lebron James on social media in

Response to His AD.” Sports News, Sportskeeda, 8 Nov. 2022,

https://www.sportskeeda.com/basketball/news-lay-chips-wine-tequila-get-couch-work-

free-throws-skip-bayless-throws-major-shade-lebron-james-social-media-response-ad.

O'Toole, Eliza. Athletes: From Performance Analysis to Injury Prevention. 2020, Nova,

https://web.p.ebscohost.com/ehost/ebookviewer/ebook?sid=2d98cd8e-6680-4d6f-9454-

0ac105adc45b%40redis&ppid=pp_101&vid=0&format=EB, Accessed 26 Apr. 2023.

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“Raiders vs Cowboys: Thanksgiving Football Game Score and Highlights.” MARCA, 26 Nov.

2021, https://www.marca.com/en/nfl/2021/11/24/619d8c28ca47410f6c8b45de.html.

Rapp, Timothy. “Lebron James Family Foundation 'I Promise' School Approved for Akron.”

Bleacher Report, Bleacher Report, 29 Nov. 2017,

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2746496-lebron-james-family-foundation-i-promise-

school-approved-for-akron.

Schneider, Keith. “How Lebron James Uses His Influence on Improve Community

Development.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 9 Mar. 2021,

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/business/lebron-james-community-

development.html.

Werner, By Jeremy. “Eric Legrand on Roundtree: 'Everything Happens for a Reason'.”

IlliniInquirer.com, 21 May 2019,

https://247sports.com/college/illinois/LongFormArticle/Illinois-Fighting-Illini-football-

Bobby-Roundtree-Eric-LeGrand-Rutgers-spinal-cord-injury-132208453/.