For many sports fans and media members alike, the days of the overpaid, underachieving athlete have been lingering for years. Sure, we’ve often complained to fellow co-workers, family members and just about anyone who would listen, about how we could do these athletes jobs better and rightfully earn their tremendous salaries. Laughable but albeit true. When it comes to paying someone an insane amount of money to dribble, hit, throw, kick, or slap an object into a goal, we should not turn our anger towards the players receiving these huge contracts. After all, they’re just following the blueprint of the “American Dream.” Dream big, work hard to achieve your goals, and ultimately be rewarded with a really nice salary to purchase the house with the white picket fence in a great school district for our children. Our grievances should ALWAYS be reserved for the idiots in charge of handing out these ridiculous contracts. Granted, some GMs due their homework and follow the necessary protocols that leads to their final decision on a particular player. Others watch video clips of players, or see these guys play against very mediocre competition and think that this will translate into success on another level. I have compiled a short list of players from different professional leagues who have all been given huge contracts, but have either performed miserably or simply just didn’t earn their pay.
Courtesy: Fox Sports/MSN
1. Jamarcus Russell (Former Raider QB)- In this instance, I’m not going to get too critical because the man that was responsible for Russell’s $61 million contract ($32 million guaranteed) is no longer with us. I’m a firm believer in not kicking a man when he’s down so the late Al Davis will be spared in this case. I will say that the people that were surrounding Davis at the time did him and his franchise a disservice by not doing their due diligence on Russell. He was an overweight, slow, lazy quarterback at LSU who just so happen to have a cannon attached to his right arm. Nevertheless, having a cannon for an arm alone does not translate into NFL success, especially when the players at the next level are faster and stronger than the ones at the collegiate level. Now Russell is out of the NFL altogether and the Raiders are on their fourth starting quarterback since his departure nearly three years ago. Need I say more?
2. Matt Flynn (Oakland Raiders)- Sure throwing for 480 yards and six touchdowns in the National Football League is impressive especially when you lead your team to a victory. It’s becomes even less impressive when you’re subbing for one of the top 5 quarterbacks in the league, playing against mostly second and third stringers. The shine also starts to wear off when it becomes apparent that this is your first start in the NFL in four seasons and you’ve only thrown for one other touchdown during that time. I’m all for equal opportunity but let’s be for real people! Everyone around NFL circles were labeling the Miami Dolphins as idiots for letting Flynn slip through their fingers and naming Ryan Tannehill as their starting quarterback. Look who’s laughing now! While Tannehill and the Dolphins are enjoying an impressive 2-0 start to this season, Matt Flynn has been designated as the backup once again but this time to Terrell Pryor in Oakland. Never mind the fact that Flynn isn’t even on the Seahawks roster anymore, but his $21 million contract made Seattle the laughing stock of free agency.
3. Rodney Stuckey (Detroit Pistons)- This one was a little difficult because I actually think that Stuckey could be worth his contract if he wasn’t such a head case. While I didn’t agree that Stuckey should have replaced Chauncey “Big Shot” Billups as the Detroit Pistons floor general, I did agree that change was in order and that Stuckey deserved a chance to shine in the backcourt. Team GM and resident icon Joe Dumars had other ideas for the team and it started with sending Billups out the door in order to transform the Pistons into a younger, more up tempo team. He signed former Chicago Bulls sixth man scoring machine Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva to add to defensive stopper Tayshaun Prince. Stuckey made sense to transform the Pistons backcourt to catch up to the rest of the league but I don’t think a three year deal worth $25 million, motivates a 23 year old hot head with no prior responsibilities or experience. What’s his motivation? You’ve already given him the money so why should he work hard? There’s no incentive to get better. There’s no drive to become a leader. Those qualities and traits have to be instilled within the person already. Those things are normally what leads a player to work hard and eventually get the big contract. Showing up late to practices, arguing with the coaching staff over not getting enough shots, and becoming a malcontent really isn’t the type of player I would want to represent the new era of my franchise. Let alone reward him with a contract that pays him a guaranteed $8.5 million per season.
4. Joel Anthony (Miami Heat)- Here’s a guy that isn’t a troublemaker and actually shows up to work and does what he’s suppose to do for his team. On the other hand, there’s no way that a guy with career averages of 2.4 points and 3.2 rpg should warrant a contract making more money than upper echelon players. Especially when he’s not even his team’s starting center! $18 million for a center with those stats? Then you have a guy like Nate Robinson who not only help propel the limping Chicago Bulls past the heavily favored Brooklyn Nets, but shocked the eventual champion Heat with an upset win in Game 1 of the second round of the eastern conference playoffs. A guy who has been a rock for Tom Thibodeau’s ball club with game winning shots, explosive scoring from the lead guard position, and not to mention playing with the heart of a lion at all times. Refusing to be intimidated by anyone or anything. He gets rewarded by not being re-signed by the Bulls and handed a meager 2 year $4 million contract from the Denver Nuggets. What was Pat Riley and Mickey Arison thinking? Maybe the luxury cruise line business has been treating Arison well enough over the years that he can burn millions of dollars on stiffs like Anthony, to warm the bench for a winded Udonis Haslem.
