There’s a new program in the NFL called Pay to Play. Ashley Lelie, who was traded from the Broncos to the Falcons, decided he wanted to use this program to the tune of about $400k. Lelie decided to hold out of preseason training camp with the Broncos due to being unhappy as the 3rd wide receiver on the team. Having their hands tied, the Broncos traded Lelie a few days ago to the Falcons. The interesting part about the trade is he will be the 3rd wide receiver with the Falcons too. Even more interesting is the Broncos stance that they will fine Lelie for each day missed and will look to recover a prorated portion of his signing bonus. The total of the fines and prorated signing bonus could amount to over $1.1mm. Lelie was going to be paid $700k for the 2006 season. If you do the math, you’ll realize that he will actually owe the Broncos about $400k.

I hope the Broncos go through with it for the full amount. You don’t sign a contract and then back out of it. He had to know that when he signed. It’s all part of the agreement between the players union and the owners. If you don’t like it, then find another profession. Some might say the contract isn’t fair because the team can drop you at any time. Well, I’ll say it again, he had to know that when he signed. If you don’t like it, play your career on 1 year deals or find another profession. Hopefully if he’s fined the full amount other players will learn from it and refrain from doing the same.