eye - Exactly the point. Kraft has deep pockets and lots of clout in areas that can be very advantageous to players. There were a lot of perks we don't even think about in SF. Example, housing deals. In those days, paying $100 a month rent on a home that should have been rented out for $2,000 a month. That actually happened in Minnesota too, but a lot of people don't realize it. Ahmad Rashad rented a place that he and his then wife Phylicia were sued by a rental company that claimed the trashed the place they rented. The Vikings were listed on the complaint, because they were paying most of the rent on the home. The NFL was careful to stay out of it. Then Tony Dorsett rented a home that Rashad had bought, and when he went belly up, the money owed on the rent was the responsibility of the Vikings. They were obviously paying most of it.
It's always been there, but some teams are deeper involved in it than others. But, yes, there are some players willing to take lesser pay for a chance at the brass ring. But, for every one who will, there has to be at least two or three that get "side perks" that are technically outside the scope of league control.
One of Aaron Rodgers perks is that he gets a brand new truck every year, in addition to the advertising money he gets paid for the spokesperson job as well. They consider the truck about the same as a real estate agent wearing a gold jacket advertising the realtor they work with.
I heard a good one, while out in NYC 25 years ago. I'd met a guy on the plane from Chicago. We chatted all the way to NY, and we talked about his business, which I found fascinating. He was about to put an offer in to buy the rights to the sequel to Gone With The Wind. Anyhow, and strangely enough, we were both staying at the same Manhattan Hotel. We decided to get together for drinks after we were done with work. He - having spent a lot of time in NY in the past, and knowing a lot of interesting people - suggested we go to Mickey Mantle's for a late dinner and drinks. He had contacted a couple of old friends, and wanted to see them too.
Anyhow, we went to Mantle's, and his friends were there. Mickey Mantle, and Whitey Ford. We had dinner, and Mantle talked about how things were, when he played with the Yankees during the 50s. He and Whitey would go out bar-hopping, and pay for their drinks with checks in denominations of $5 or less, usually giving them a buck or so change back, which they'd leave as a tip. Their checks were stamped that they were no longer valid, after 90 days. They were selling their autographs for drinks, since most people would never cash in their checks. They'd keep them as souvenirs.
Some of the things you find out through experience are amazing.
