Rashard Spills the Beans on Ben

[birtikidis]

I'll disagree here. 300K is a lot of money? Lets put this in perspective. Many rookies have worked and sacrificed all their lives, will die younger, age poorly and then vets making much more money put 25k bills on their CC? So after taxes he is looking at 200K...if that. They might have family to take care of, only a few years to make a significant living and the vets basically abuse them financially when most vets are set. I actually find it classless. And I think it's real easy to look at the numbers and act like they will be set for life. Which in most cases is not true.

It's taken me 8 years to make 300k. I earned a degree but have had to pay every penny back. 300k is a lot of money. Don't fool yourself There are people that would take 15 years to make that. AND they'll die a lot younger than Tony Hills will because they won't get near the health care that he's entitled to.

[Shawn]

I think you guys might be missing my point. It's not just about Hills. It's about the practice and rookies in general. Many rookies will not make a ton of money. Many are in debt and trying to take care of family. And guys who are making millions upon millions are putting large bills onto them? It's classless. Ok, lets say you are a nurse fresh out of school. You get a job in a hospital. You are making 45k/yr. And part of the initiation is the nurse manager, medical director and senior nurses run up a bill at a local restaurant for $3,800 and make him/her pay for it. It's tacky, classless and of course that new nurse could refuse but would be ostracized. The practice in general is abusive.

Second, I dislike the mentality of saying well because they earn more than me we can abuse them differently, make them pull more weight, take more of their resources, or that there should be a higher set of standards for those individuals. I know it's not a popular thought but why would you punish someone for being successful? Why would we resent them? If that practice is repugnant for that nurse why not for a rookie in the NFL?

[Shawn]

It's taken me 8 years to make 300k. I earned a degree but have had to pay every penny back. 300k is a lot of money. Don't fool yourself There are people that would take 15 years to make that. AND they'll die a lot younger than Tony Hills will because they won't get near the health care that he's entitled to.

That wasn't something given to Hills. It's what he earned. Why resent him for that or hold him to a standard you wouldn't want to be held to? That's not even getting into the fact that he is in a different tax bracket and will see a much smaller percentage of his money.

[phillyesq]

I think you guys might be missing my point. It's not just about Hills. It's about the practice and rookies in general. Many rookies will not make a ton of money. Many are in debt and trying to take care of family. And guys who are making millions upon millions are putting large bills onto them? It's classless. Ok, lets say you are a nurse fresh out of school. You get a job in a hospital. You are making 45k/yr. And part of the initiation is the nurse manager, medical director and senior nurses run up a bill at a local restaurant for $3,800 and make him/her pay for it. It's tacky, classless and of course that new nurse could refuse but would be ostracized. The practice in general is abusive.

Second, I dislike the mentality of saying well because they earn more than me we can abuse them differently, make them pull more weight, take more of their resources, or that there should be a higher set of standards for those individuals. I know it's not a popular thought but why would you punish someone for being successful? Why would we resent them? If that practice is repugnant for that nurse why not for a rookie in the NFL?

It's a different world. The comparison to nurses holds no water. These are guys who will pay thousands of dollars for a jersey number. Who give out 10k watches as tokens of appreciation.

[Shawn]

It's a different world. The comparison to nurses holds no water. These are guys who will pay thousands of dollars for a jersey number. Who give out 10k watches as tokens of appreciation.

That's where I disagree. Having different standards of reasonable human interaction based on salary is discriminatory. The percentage of the insult to salary is the same, actually more if you account for tax bracket to Hills or another rookie. Not to mention the "world" you speak about isn't the same for all players. Low round rookies are not paying thousands for jersey numbers or giving out Rolexes in appreciation.

[Slapstick]

No, but they are making $#!+pots of money...far more than average people.

[Shawn]

No, but they are making $#!+pots of money...far more than average people.

Yes, so lets hold them to a different standard and allow them to be abused by people who make much more money. That mentality is one of the fundamental problems with government today.

[Slapstick]

Yes, so lets hold them to a different standard and allow them to be abused by people who make much more money. That mentality is one of the fundamental problems with government today.

Well, you and I are apparently talking about two different things. There is a big difference between Tony Hills, he of the $1.455 million contract, and a nurse being stuck with a huge bill. Does that make it okay? No. It seems the team agrees because the practice was reportedly discontinued. Which is a good thing. But, I just don't feel bad for him.

[Shoe]

Well, you and I are apparently talking about two different things. There is a big difference between Tony Hills, he of the $1.455 million contract, and a nurse being stuck with a huge bill. Does that make it okay? No. It seems the team agrees because the practice was reportedly discontinued. Which is a good thing. But, I just don't feel bad for him.

Its just like anything else. Everything is ruined by the dummy who takes things too far. I think its a fun little "hazing" ritual. If they stick him with a $1,000 check or something. But $25k?! For a guy who doesn't even know if he'll make it out of camp? That is BS man.

[Slapstick]

Definitely! I'd be like, "If I'm paying, we're going to Quaker Steak!!"

[papillon]

Well, I have to side with Shawn a bit here. Here are the numbers. Hills signed a 1.45 million dollar contract for 3 years which brings him to about 483,333/year. So, a 25K bill is 5.2% of his annual salary pre-tax. 5.2% of a nurse's salary at 45K is $2,340, I don't think that nurse would really want to have to pay that bill. It wouldn't be crippling, but it is a hefty prank for someone making 45K (the same as 25K wouldn't be crippling to Hills, but still nothing to sneeze at).

I think the practice of having the rookies pay is fine within limits, maybe they have to pay couple thousand dollars as a welcome to the NFL, but I think 5% of your first year's salary is a bit steep. I'm happy to hear that Ben helped him out and never asked to be repaid whatever the amount that Ben covered.

Pappy

[Slapstick]

No, I get it and to a degree, I agree with you. Nobody, regardless of what they make, should be subjected to a 5% hit of their annual salary in one meal.

I just don't feel too sorry for him. It isn't as though he's legally obligated to pay $30 for a gallon of milk. Just as Ben Roethlisberger had MUCH more disposable income than Hills, so did Hills have MUCH more disposable income than a nurse...

[feltdizz]

Hills, who is amazingly still in the league, signed a 3 year, $1.45 million dollar contract which included a $304,500 signing bonus. I'm not going to weep for him.

who shed a tear? my point is his card was maxed out over a prank. I like to decide how I spend my money.

65% of athletes go broke.... and part of the reason is because players think pranks like this are funny.

put glue in my shoes, tape my locker shut but don't spend my money for me.

[feltdizz]

It's taken me 8 years to make 300k. I earned a degree but have had to pay every penny back. 300k is a lot of money. Don't fool yourself There are people that would take 15 years to make that. AND they'll die a lot younger than Tony Hills will because they won't get near the health care that he's entitled to.

its not about you tho, this is about a rookie being hazed financially by rich vets.

how would you feel if your colleagues invited you out to dinner and stuck you with a 2K bill right after you got your first job?

[bostonsteeler]

I'll disagree here. 300K is a lot of money? Lets put this in perspective. Many rookies have worked and sacrificed all their lives, will die younger, age poorly and then vets making much more money put 25k bills on their CC? So after taxes he is looking at 200K...if that. They might have family to take care of, only a few years to make a significant living and the vets basically abuse them financially when most vets are set. I actually find it classless. And I think it's real easy to look at the numbers and act like they will be set for life. Which in most cases is not true.

While I agree with you, it wasn't his entire paycheck. His contract was for well over a million. 300k was his signing bonus. I think they also generally assume that they're going to have additional contracts later.

Even these so-called "Vets" are kids -- no older than grad students or people in med school. They haven't really experienced life on the outside. The typical age is below 25..