If youve followed the NFL with any kind of consistancy this year you've heard of the "Gridiron Greats" organization set up to help former NFL players in need.
Set up by Matt Birk and often championed by Mike Ditka. The idea is to get current players involved in helping out the older and now retired players who may be in need of health benifits or other needs. Many of whom come from before the era of megakagillion dollar contracts.
Players who played no small part in making the game what it is today and helped lay the groundwork for things such as free agency and the resulting huge contracts.
One would think current players. for all the rhetoric we see them spout over their reverence for former players. And in recognition of the fact that they will to a man one day also be a former player. Would be a bit more active in helping out now and in turn helping lay the groundwork for an organization they themselves may one day be in need of.
Nope
To quote from the article itself
"Vikings center Matt Birk sent a letter that was express-mailed and delivered to every NFL player right after Thanksgiving. He asked they donate a portion of their game check from the Dec.21 games to Gridiron Greats, the charity that benefits former players in need.
There are 53 players on each team. There are 32 teams. That's 1,696 players.
According to Jennifer Smith, the executive director of Gridiron Greats, as of Thursday a total of 10-15 players have sent in checks in response to what they were calling Gridiron Guardian Sunday.
The response was not 10-15 players per team. That's 10-15 players total. That's not even one player per team. The money collected has reached $175,000, but $50,000 of that came from Birk himself."This is disgraceful.
As Mike Ditka points out
"Suppose every player in the league wrote a check for $1,000. I'll assume it would even be tax-deductible as a charitable contribution. That would be $1.696 million. Can they afford it? Forget about the four players who have $100 million contracts. Let's focus on the players making the minimum base salary. For a rookie this season that was $295,000. For a player with 4-6 years of experience that was $605,000. For a veteran with at least 10 years' experience just hanging on at the minimum, he still made $805,000. Does $1,000 seem like all that much?"Just goes to show once again the current "Its all about me" attitude of these primadonas
For all we hear about the "charity work" Most wont even help their own kind.
Think about it. Much of the charity work most of them do is sponsored by the NFL, or the teams they play for. and probably mandated By the NFL or those teams as a PR move.
And of all the well publicized charity work we hear they do. Think about it again
There are 1,696 players currently in the NFL. Of that 1,696, How many of them do you actually hear of that do charity work.
My bet is less then 20
Pathetic.
Ohh thats right. what is it we always hear them say when they want a new big money contract?
"I've got a family to take care of."
Yea.. must be hard living on a meager base salary of $295,000. (League minimum)
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/2009/01/29/2009-01-29_nfls_current_players_ignoring_retired_ve.html?page=1
