How a Rookie Spends His First Paycheck

Not all rookie paychecks are created equal. Some checks are so massive that they can sustain a person for the rest of their life. Can you imagine receiving a paycheck each week worth enough money to completely payoff a different house each and every Wednesday for 17 weeks? My “big pimpin” NFL experience was nothing like that, nor is that the case for most guys just starting out in the league.

For those of you who ever wonder what a rookie does with his first paycheck in the NFL, allow me to offer a brief glimpse into what that experience is like…

As a sixth-round draft pick in the 2005 NFL draft, my first paycheck, however modest as it may be by NFL standards, came in the amount of $35,000 via my signing bonus. I had just signed with the Oakland Raiders for a two-year deal just before the start of training camp. 

During that time in the Raiders’ organization, late owner Al Davis implemented a contract-negotiation policy for guys drafted in the later rounds.  The policy only allowed those picks the choice between negotiating a two-year deal or a seven-year deal. The Raiders’ reason behind this was to lock their younger players up in cheaper rookie contracts for as long as possible. For those who opt for the two-year deal, they technically would have no leverage when the deal expires because they would still be one year away from even qualifying as a restricted free agent.

This questionable negotiation strategy was one of the reasons that my fellow sixth-round colleague Anntaj Hawthorne decided to become the only sixth-round draft pick I’ve ever known to become a training camp holdout. Needless to say, he was the butt of several jokes when he finally showed up to camp a few days later.

The benefit of signing the seven-year option is that it comes with a significantly larger signing bonus—about three-times larger to be more specific. It’s critical that a later-round pick, who may or may not make the team, get as much upfront money as he possibly can.

The downside, however, is revealed if that player happens to become a key contributor on the team. He then would be forced to play out the majority of an inferior contract, unless he exercised the option of holding out to force renegotiations before the rookie contract is up. But even that wouldn’t happen until four or five years down the road—which is a lot of years to be wasted playing on “rookie contract” dollars.

I received the check for my signing bonus in an envelope handed to me by a staff member of the Oakland Raiders on the first day of training camp. This was by far the biggest check made out to me I had ever seen at the time.  I remember sitting on my hotel bed and just staring at every detail for at least a few minutes.

The years of blood, sweat and tears endured in order to make that moment possible reverberated through my mind as I took a rare moment to appreciate and really allow the significance of the achievement to finally sink in.

The first thing I did with the money was pay the invoice sent to me by my agent, which included his fee of 3 percent as well as a reimbursement fee from a loan of $12,000. The loan was utilized to take care of living expenses during the pre-draft training process, which was an absolute necessity.

The remaining amount was then left in a bank account while I fought my way through training camp in the heat of a Napa Valley summer trying to earn my place in the National Football League.

I did find time during one of our only days off in training camp to visit a furniture store with my girlfriend at the time. We ended up buying a glass-top coffee table for my one bedroom apartment for about $179.

By the way, avoid glass-top tables of any kind whenever possible, they’re too hard to keep clean. But I digress.

Considering I was still driving the Jeep Wrangler I had since I was 18, I didn’t need to spend any money on a car.

I probably should have used some of that money on a nice suit for away games like Matt Bowen did with his first paycheck. Bowen is a former NFL player and current writer for the National Football Post. When I asked him to recall how he spent his first parcel of NFL dough, he had this to say:

“Paid my rent ($625 for a 1 bedroom apt), bought a suit to wear for road games and then invested the rest in mutual funds. I'm pretty lame.”

I found his response far more interesting than I did lame as it seemed to go against the typical perception of the NFL athlete—you know, the one’s we see “making it rain” in clubs or weighing down their earlobes with giant diamonds.  

So I decided to ask around and see what other former and current NFL guys had to say. Apparently my frugal spending habits are not as foreign to the NFL as common perception might have us think.

Former teammate and current analyst/writer for NFL.com and the NFL Network Akbar Gbaja-Biamila said “My first year I saved so much... I guess my first big purchase was the 1st iPod.” He also added that he went to Best Buy and bought several “random small gadgets.” Small electronics are essential when so much of your life is spent on the go.

Another former teammate I spoke with was Sam Williams. He claims that he didn’t spend a dime of his signing bonus and just left it in the bank. He then added that his first big purchase was a home.

When I asked rookie running back C.J. Anderson of the Denver Broncos what he spent his first paycheck on his response was:

 ”I saved it. As an undrafted free agent I have to be smart because who knows how long I’m gonna last.”

When I asked if he had made even a small purchase he did say that he spent his money on a rental car while in Denver. Sounds like a kid heading down the path of reasonable decision making.

For any young man in his twenties to suddenly be handed more money than he has ever seen in exchange for his services as a football player, it’s a special moment in life—one that echoes through time. The journey into the NFL is a surreal marathon of obstacles, peril and promise. Few things can provide confirmation of your arrival like holding that first paycheck in your hands.

Anyone who has ever dreamed of playing professional football surely can comprehend the sense of accomplishment one feels when looking down and seeing a check from an NFL team, signed with your name on it.  This is the moment you can officially call yourself a professional athlete.

So spend wisely because you never know when that life of a privileged athlete will run its’ course. 

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