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Do Professional Athletes Make Too Much Money?

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Do professional athletes make too much money?

Neumann University

Daniel Kilpatrick

Every year player's salaries reach new highs. Athletes are treated as celebrities in American society and idolized by young athletes. The kids who see what their favorite player is doing through the media also are being influenced by them. The example that professional athletes set is very important because they looked up to. The example that many athletes set is unfortunately a negative one. Most people think that athletes make too much money but there are those that believe they are paid fairly. The enormous amount of money that professional athletes receive is having a negative effect on kids today. Athletes should make less money to play a game because the huge contracts that they receive give them power. They are concerned with making money and not the example that they are creating for today’s youth.
Professional players feel that they earn every dollar of the millions they make every year to play a game. Those who think that players are paid fairly in professional sports argue that since athletes make so much money for their teams they should compensated accordingly. According to Forbes magazine "The average NFL team is worth $957 million" (Forbes, 2012). Teams generate large profits and as a result can afford to pay athletes large salaries.
The past NFL season, players and team owners tried to come to an agreement before the season. According to Pete Prisco, a senior writer for CBS Sports "The players and owners can talk all they want about health issues, playing 18 games and any other issue thrown into these talks, but the bottom line in the current collective bargaining agreement talks is money"(CBS Sports). The two parties talked for 130 days until an agreement was made. The players did not want to give up their money even though "The

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