MW A $100 million NFL contract isn't enough money to last a lifetime, says former football star Odell Beckham Jr.
By Weston Blasi
The former NFL star has stirred up a conversation around how quickly a professional athlete can run through $100 million - or what's left of that sum after several key expenses
Former New York Giants star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has people - including fellow pro athletes - talking about how to make $100 million last a lifetime.
'I always explain this to people: You give somebody a five-year, $100 million contract - what is it really? That's five years for $60 [million]. We're getting taxed. That's $12 million a year you have to spend, use, save, invest, flaunt, whatever.'
That was former NFL wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. discussing finances in a recent episode of the podcast "The Pivot" and distinguishing headlines from reality when it comes to understanding professional athletes' contracts.
The show is hosted by three ex-NFL players: Fred Taylor, Channing Crowder and Ryan Clark.
Beckham explained that when fans see an athlete signing, for example, a $100 million contract over five-year term, they often don't register that the player isn't actually taking home that total sum once you take into account how much of the deal is guaranteed (regardless of whether they get cut or traded), state and federal taxes, agent fees and the cost of taking care of family members.
"I'm just being real," Beckham continued, while breaking down how quickly $100 million can disappear. "I'm going to buy a car, get my mom a house," he said. "Everything costs money."
By his math, that $100 million, five-year contract is more like $60 million after taxes. From there, his expenses as a pro athlete add up to $4 million a year, or $20 million over five years, which whittles that $60 million after taxes to more like $40 million, or $8 million a year for that five-year span. "Can you make that last forever?" he asked.
This has kicked off plenty of discussion about whether a pro athlete can live off that sum forever, with videos of Beckham's comments being viewed over 15 million times and counting on social media as of Monday afternoon.
Beckham, whose biggest contract in the NFL was his five-year, $90 million deal with the New York Giants in 2018, made a total of $101.8 million during his 10-year NFL career, according to Spotrac data.
Beckham's comments suggesting that $100 million isn't enough for professional athletes to live off of for the long term has created a stir on social media, notably among fellow former athletes. Many of them shared similar experiences and perceptions from when they were professional athletes, including former New York Knicks guard Carmelo Anthony. Anthony said that he understands where Beckham is coming from and warned that athletes can get into financial trouble after their playing careers are over, especially if they don't change their lifestyles or budget properly.
"Yes, you [need to] change your lifestyle," Anthony said, "but your lifestyle changes drastically" once you start making pro-athlete money, and many athletes struggle with the transition once they retire.
But other former athletes, like former Denver Broncos player Shannon Sharpe, who hosts the "Club Shay Shay" podcast, said Beckham's comments about a $100 million contract not being able to last forever went too far. "If you get $60 million liquid and that can't last you a lifetime, you've got a problem. ... If you're spending $4 million a year and it ain't business-related, you are out of your damn mind," Sharpe said.
Beckham is living off of more than his NFL earnings, though. In addition to Beckham's wages, he was one of the biggest off-field earners in the game. His $29 million, five-year contract with Nike $(NKE)$ was one of the largest shoe deals in NFL history. During his playing career, Beckham also had deals with EA Sports $(EA)$, Dunkin', Head & Shoulders, Foot Locker, Lenovo and Steiner Sports totaling another $20 million, according to Opendorse.
The former Giants receiver, who also played for the Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Rams, Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins, isn't the only current or former athlete who has come out publicly about issues that can arise from the sudden wealth that pro athletes are exposed to. New York Giants quarterback Jameis Winston recently said on a podcast that he regrets letting his friends and family spend $400,000 a month of his money when he first entered the league.
See: The NBA exec who traded superstar Luka Doncic cost the team $100 million in franchise value
In addition to his 575 career receptions and 59 touchdown catches, Beckham was famous for a money move he made back in 2021: turning his NFL salary into bitcoin.
Beckham converted his $750,000 NFL salary into the cryptocurrency (BTCUSD) while playing for the Rams as part of an endorsement deal with Block Inc.'s Cash App $(XYZ)$. Bitcoin's price was $64,158 at the time.
The cryptocurrency's price has been on a roller-coaster ride since then, peaking around $126,000. It sits just above $90,000 as of Monday, meaning Beckham's investment is still in great shape.
It's not clear that Beckham still holds all of the crypto he originally received, however. Representatives for Beckham did not verify the terms of his bitcoin investment to MarketWatch.
Beckham later posted a response to the attention on his comments about $100 contracts not lasting a lifetime on X. "Boy u can't say nothin in this world nowadays," he wrote, adding, along with a laughing-till-crying emoji, that people love to take things out of context. "[W]hat a world."
Read on: With bitcoin down in price, should you rethink how much crypto to own? Here's what experts say.
-Weston Blasi
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 13, 2025 14:54 ET (19:54 GMT)
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