NFL
Sam Bradford Made $130 Million in the NFL Despite Never Having a Winning Season
![Sam Bradford was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft, but he's already out of the league after banking $130 million.](https://www.sportscasting.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/GettyImages-182220546-scaled.jpg)
Sam Bradford came into the NFL in 2010 with high hopes of becoming a superstar. He won the Heisman Trophy as a sophomore at Oklahoma and led the Sooners to the BCS Championship the same season. Bradford was selected No. 1 overall in the 2010 NFL draft by the St. Louis Rams, but that turned out to be the highlight of his NFL career. Well, that and the $130 million he earned despite never having a winning season in the league.
Sam Bradford had a disappointing and injury-riddled NFL career
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When Sam Bradford was drafted No. 1 overall in 2010, he was expected to become the Rams’ franchise quarterback for years to come. He dominated in college at Oklahoma, and nearly everyone around the league believed he had the arm and the intangibles to excel at the next level.
Bradford put together a decent rookie season in St. Louis. He threw for 3,512 yards and 18 touchdowns, but he also threw 15 interceptions. Rams fans were encouraged considering the lack of talent on the roster, but things took a turn in year two.
Bradford followed his rookie season with a 1-9 record the next year. 2011 was also the year Bradford’s injury-prone label took shape. The QB missed six games throughout the season due to there separate injuries.
The worst of his injury luck came in 2013. Bradford tore his ACL in October of 2013, then returned the next season only to tear it again during a preseason game. Bradford missed an entire season and was never the same player again.
Sam Bradford never had a winning season as an NFL starter
After his career with the Rams took a dive, Bradford joined the Philadelphia Eagles in 2015. He went 7-7 as the starter, but he missed another two games due to a shoulder injury sustained in week 10.
Bradford moved on to the Minnesota Vikings in 2016, and he had a brief career renaissance. He threw 20 touchdowns to just five interceptions in 2016. He also set the NFL record for completion percentage in a single season (71.6 percent).
After a promising first season with the Vikings, Bradford returned as the starter in 2017 and started the season 2-0. Unfortunately, he hurt his knee again and underwent arthroscopic surgery that ended his season.
Bradford returned to the field in 2018 with the Arizona Cardinals, but he only started three games, and he lost all three. That was the last we’ll see from Bradford in an NFL uniform.
The former No. 1 pick finished his career with a 34-48-1 record. He never had a winning season as a starting QB in the NFL, but you wouldn’t know it from his wallet.
Sam Bradford made $130 million in the NFL
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Sam Bradford never made a single Pro Bowl. He never played in a single playoff game. He never even completed a single season with a winning record. Despite all that, the former QB banked more than $130 million during his time in the NFL.
After his solid rookie season, Bradford was awarded a six-year, $78 million contract extension with the Rams. He went on to make $23 million from the Eagles, $25 million from the Vikings, and another $16 million for three games with the Cardinals. Talk about fleecing an entire league.
Bradford finished his career with $130,022,863 in career earnings, which makes him the 17th highest-paid player in NFL history.
All stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference, earnings courtesy of Spotrac