America's Game in Denver: the NBA vs. the NFL

There’s been no shortage of anger coming out from the tweets of some of the biggest names in the NFL over the last few weeks (read: years) focusing directly at NBA players and their seemingly astounding salaries. To the average American, both leagues have professional athletes who are paid ludicrous amounts of money. But who will capture the majority of the viewership for these sports in Denver?

The National Football League has endeared itself to the public by calling itself America’s Game, but the NFL audience and fanbase is in decline in recent years. Last season alone, the NFL’s viewership decreased by a solid percentage, and it’s forecasted to decline even more through the 2018-2019 season. And it isn’t because the commercials during NFL games take so long viewers begin to click away from the channel.

One reason, in particular, is the ridiculousness of the celebrity status of certain players. Their comments are almost politically important, and we pay them copious amounts of money to play football. Do we compensate them for the risk of their chosen profession? Their annual salaries would lead one to believe that yes, team owners reserve money to compensate stellar players - and injuries do count. They affect a player’s career - especially in the National Football League in comparison to some of the other professional major league sports.

But many people don’t want to hear about athletes complaining about their salary considering most Americans don’t see that kind of money in a lifetime, let alone a year. Especially when Case Keenum of the Denver Broncos could pay the annual salary of 276 Denverites.

Yet the dollar signs of NFL contracts are easy on the eyes - they’re alluring and eye-catching, but they’re distracting because, in all reality, there are far too many differences between professional sporting leagues to truly compare salaries of big-ticket contracts in the NBA and the NFL. Five years ago, Kobe Bryant was the only household NBA star with an average yearly salary larger than the NFL’s top contract.

The length of each professional roster is one of the most critical and underrated things taken into account when looking at NBA and NFL contracts. There’s more money to go around the NFL, but there are also more roster spots to account for with the 53 players per team. In the NBA, there are only 12 players on the team roster.

How many years does the average football player spend as an active member of a team roster? 4 years. NBA players have a longer shelf life than that of the average football player. They’re subject to fewer injuries and can play longer due to their bodily condition which stands to reason their contracts may be higher. The players are the product the league is selling, so franchises and their owners are making investments in their players.

Even though NFL dominates fan-desired viewing/channels at 37%, the NBA is rising from 11% and upwards. Will the NBA become “Denver’s Game” instead of the NFL? Fans and their willingness to support the franchises will tell. Parents are more willing to enroll their kids in sports that don’t lead to a myriad of sports injuries and short careers - and people are happier to watch a game that isn’t paused every three seconds because of a flag thrown on a penalty where a player did something potentially too dangerous.