When any franchise is willing to shell out tens to hundreds of millions of dollars to any particular athlete, it's usually for all the right reasons. We've seen some of the greatest athletes of all-time get their payday and we've seen some others that weren't so deserving. Now, we're here to breakdown the highest-paid NFL players of all-time. Check out the list below. Do you think these athletes are worth every penny?
The United States of America is home to the most entertainment-based billion-dollar industries on the planet. From the film industry to sports franchises, the masses just want to be entertained and root for their favorite constructs and entities. One of those constructs just so happens to be the highly-popularized National Football League.
The NFL is currently ranked first in the world amongst professional sports leagues in revenue earnings bringing in approximately $15.56 billion as a collective and approximately $396.1 million per team in 2017. With this type of cash flowing in year after year, the NFL has the spending power to pay the best athletes in the world for their services.
Not all celebrities have fame and fortune, some are just famous – and in a ton of debt. They came from rags to riches, then went back to rags. Whether they’ve filed bankruptcy, ended up in court, or just can’t stop spending, celebrities mismanage their money just like everyone else. They just hide it well.
50 Cent coined the term “wanksta,” then “partied like it was his birthday” until he filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2015. The rapper was said to be anywhere between $10 million and $50 million in debt. In 2016, a federal bankruptcy court judge in Connecticut approved a plan for the founder of G-Unit to pay his debts back. He was able to get his bankruptcy discharged in February of the following year.
Following a 45-year-long career in Hollywood, acting in more than 70 films, actor Gary Busey found himself in more debt than he was worth. In 2012, it was reported that Busey owed between $500,000 and $1 million worth of debt, but only had $50,000 to his name. The 74-year-old actor owed money to hospitals, banks, the L.A. Waterworks District, and even a storage company. He filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy that same year. Despite his longstanding career in Hollywood, Busey's net worth is now only $500,000.
Burt Reynolds is still worth five million dollars, but his battles with debt date back more than 20 years. Between bad investments and a pricey divorce from actress Loni Anderson, the 1970s superstar had to deal with over $10 million in debt and decided to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1996. While testifying in a 1994 custody hearing, the South Florida native said he spent $40 million getting through his divorce.
The former Hollywood bad boy, Charlie Sheen owes the IRS nearly $5 million. But that's not all. In 2016, his net worth was reportedly still as high as $150 million, but he was nonetheless $12 million in debt at the time – including mortgages, legal fees, and taxes. That same year, Debt.com reported Sheen owed nearly $300,000 on an American Express card alone.