I should have been a dentist

There is no escaping the news of NFL players getting into trouble, violating substance abuse policies, or even recently the violations against the new NFL Personal Conduct Policy.    Be it unacceptable end zone dances (which by the way are friggin’ hilarious and they should do them more often), drinking too much, or not keeping their hands off young ladies…stuff happens and it gets shamelessly smeared across the media channels and falls right into our lap. (about five inches from the remote)  What also frequently occurs are the comments that are made by the general public (that’s us) in regard to these incidents either it be “athletes have it sooooooooo easy” or “dude, if I had a drug problem, I’d be so fired.”   Well…would you really?

An unofficial and unscientific examination provides some comparisons between the work life of an average Joe, and a rich NFL player.

Employment…

YOU:
At-will employment – this sounds like a raw deal when thinking about it, but the majority of American workers fall into this category.   The company hires you because they like what you bring to the table, you sign a piece of paper which may be construed as a very weak and hassle-free contract.  It explains what they expect from you and what you may expect from your employer, this is typically referred to as the “Employee Handbook” (but most don’t even read the silly thing). It covers the most basic of topics, as well as some more detailed subjects, for example if you get hurt you probably have a reasonable amount of time to recover, commonly within FMLA requirements of course, and your job is there when you come back (unless you’re worthless and they were dying to fire you anyway).  Yeah, the company can sack you out of the blue for any reason, (although it can not violate your civil rights or discrimination laws) however, the employee has a very powerful and liberating privilege, you can quit, no questions asked, and take your salary requirements with you without an agent.

NFL Player:
Oh god, there is not enough room to exploit this calamity that a player faces.  First of all, an NFL team is not bound to keep or remain faithful to a player even if they are “performing”.    Most NFL rookies sign with a team because there is a short term need to fill a position with the lure of guaranteed money up front and normally a signing bonus.  Granted, the dollar amounts of the offers are astronomical compared to you and me, but it’s not guaranteed.   Some of the money can be guaranteed but the contract isn’t!  Look at it from this perspective, you take a job right out of college making $40,000 a year, however it’s gift wrapped and presented to you as a five year deal worth $200,000 with a guaranteed $1,000 bonus up front.    What do you have…a thousand bucks and a chance to earn the rest over five years, that’s if you don’t destroy your knees, neck, back, most major ligaments, or suffer a life altering injury walking back and forth to the water cooler.   Additionally, your employer can theoretically demand money back from you in court if the deal turns sour down the road. Which is exactly what NFL owners often do.  If you are injured, you face the risk of losing your job to a number of young backups waiting in the wings, drooling to take your spot.  Why do you think most NFL players are forced to act like owners and demand so much up front?  You and I don’t need that much lucrative prodding to accept a nice salary with good benefits.

Substance abuse and conduct policy…

YOU:
Nobody is immune from a slide into crackville or sipping back on grandpa’s cough medicine a little too much.   The main difference is how it’s handled when someone admits there is a problem and seeks out help, or the adverse, getting busted with something you shouldn’t have.   Most workers in the US have a benefit called an EAP (Employee Assistance Program).   In short, an EAP is designed to provide employees a confidential outlet to receive services for issues ranging from alcohol abuse to depression.    If you divulge to your employer that you can’t put down the ganja most employers will refer you to a rehab program without jeopardizing your job – granted you complete the program successfully.  Or, it can be confidential and kept outside the scope of your employer (unless like just mentioned, you go to them first) which for all intents and purposes, protects you from your peers ever knowing you have an issue (unless you’re the moron who consistently drops his pants doing the hustle at the holiday party)  Don’t be the idiot that pushes the limits of the EAP and starts ’slinging the rock’ on the street corner, because you will get arrested and inch yourself ever closer to violating a conduct clause in your employee handbook – remember that form you signed long ago?  If you break the law, it’s broken and the consequences are up in the air from that point.

NFL Player:
The major differences are very obvious.  There is an NFL drug policy and players do frequently break it because they’re young men thrown into a world of big money, surrounded by not so influential people.  It’s difficult to determine if individual cases are handled the way WE think they should be, but you know what, a second chance (for some it becomes a third, fourth, etc) is a perk we all desire, so don’t be quick to bash.  Big deal, you and your friends do the same thing, but not in a stretch Hummer limo under the limelight.  What’s worse, many of the players have clauses in their contracts that address conduct and they do pay a price if broken, although maybe not financially, but reputations are put on the line everyday.   All in all, there is too much attention, too much focus on the act itself, and too much obligation to “behave in public”.  Barring a true felony conviction that shows up on a background check, most average employers are not privvy to what you do behind closed doors or in a nightclub for that matter.  (All bets are off if you post videos to a Facebook page, if you didn’t know that employers are now checking, God help you).
For an NFL player, every move is media fair game and the bumps along the way follow them until the day they hang the mouthpiece up to dry.  Big, big money, but an uncertain future.  You be the judge. There is always golf.

If you need to act like a punk, retire first and do it later in life.

I heard that !