Sports Nut: The Real Outrage of the Saints Bounty Scandal

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Sports Nut The Real Outrage of the Saints Bounty Scandal In a game where everyone gets hurt, does it matter why everyone gets hurt? By Nate Jackson Posted Tuesday, Mar 06, 2012, at 05:30 PM ET This is an offseason edition of the NFL roundtable, a partnership between Slate and Deadspin. For more roundtable goodness, go back and read every entry from the 2011 season, from the preseason through the Super Bowl. And click here to play the latest episode of Slate's sports podcast Hang Up and Listen. Lost in all the outrage over the New Orleans Saints' bounty program is a conversation about money and what it means to professional athletes. The sums that we've been hearing about—anywhere in the range of $1,000 to $10,000 to knock out opposing players—sound substantial to the typical American. But the average NFL player makes just short of $2 million, while the median salary is around $800,000. Players are paid only during the season, which means they earn 1/17th of their salary every week. For a player making the average salary that's around $120,000 a week. For someone making the median, it's close to $50,000. Roman Harper, the Saints safety who's been known to dish out kill shots, was in the last year of his rookie deal in 2009. That was a four-year, $2.5 million contract, well under the average NFL salary. But after the 2010 season, Harper signed a new four-year deal for $16 million guaranteed. This is money to NFL players. And it's this kind of cash that will motivate a defensive player to decapitate a quarterback, not a few grand under ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Eric Holder Says the U.S. Can Kill Its Citizens Abroad and He Doesn't Have To Explain Why People Won't Accept Limbaugh's Apology, Because He Didn't Actually Apologize Why Are There So Many Mattress Ads on the Radio, Anyway?	Advertisement
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