Saturday, July 27, 2013

No Bonus For You!

I've always been amazed that NFL players have contracts that contain a bonus for working out in the offseason with his team. I can't believe that these bonuses exist. I can't believe that they are necessary. Players should want to work out with their team during the offseason. They should want to strengthen themselves and their teams. That's the purpose of these workouts. It's not to collect a bonus.

San Francisco 49ers cornerback Tarrell Brown left $2 million on the table when he failed to workout with his team this past offseason. He had one of those workout bonuses and he failed to earn it because he didn't know about it. He learned of the money that he wouldn't earn through reports on Twitter. Of course, where else would he hear about it. He immediately fired his agent, Brian Overstreet.

Now, I can understand Brown firing his agent due to the simple fact that Overstreet failed to do his job. An agent should let his client know what's in the contract. Especially if that something is the fact that his client could earn an extra $2 million. Still, I have little sympathy for Tarrell Brown. Despite it being his agent's job to keep him informed, Brown should know that he has a workout bonus. He signed the contract. He should know what's in it. Especially something so easily understood and so easily achieved. What bothers me the most is that it didn't occur to Brown that he should work out with his football team. It shouldn't matter one bit that there's a bonus attached to the workouts. He's part of the team. Prior to being paid to play a game, football players have been working out in the offseason since they first put on the pads. High school, college, they all have offseason workouts. There wasn't a question that players would participate then. Why should there be a question now? If Tarrell Brown had thought about football like he did before he was paid, he'd have an extra $2 million now.

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