Kevin Mawae, who is currently the NFL Players Association president, had this to say of Matt Ryan's ridiculous deal:
"As a guy who has been in the league for 14 now going on 15 years and being around other veteran guys, for a young guy to get paid that kind of money and never steps foot on an NFL football field, it's a little disheartening to think of," Mawae said. "It makes it tough for a guy who's proven himself to say 'I want that kind of money' when the owners, all they're going to say is, 'Well, you weren't a first-round pick.'"And I know there is sentiment around the league amongst the players like, 'Let's do something to control these salaries and control these signing bonuses' and things like that, and I know that's something that the owners are talking about and I'm sure that's going to play in to this round of negotiations for this collective bargaining agreement."
The rookie contract structure is probably the biggest problem with the current labor deal. Picking in the top 5 can be more of a curse than a reward after a bad season. Think about the ramifications this deal will have if Ryan is terrible.