FOR USE AS DESIRED
737 PLAYERS SHARE RECORD $25.1 MILLION ’97 POSTSEASON EARNINGS
A total of $25.1 million – the largest NFL postseason pool ever – will be divided among 737 players who participated in the 1997 postseason, the National Football League announced today.
The Super Bowl Champion Denver Broncos each earned $103,000 per full share for the playoffs, not counting the Pro Bowl.
Each player for the Green Bay Packers, the NFC champion, earned $75,000 per full share in the playoffs.
Denver’s postseason pool totaled more than $5.9 million, while Green Bay’s payout was $4.4 million. As a ’97 Wild Card team, Denver played one more playoff game than Green Bay.
The total postseason pool for all teams was $25,143,500.
Eight Super Bowl XXXII players increased their postseason earnings by playing in the 1998 AFC-NFC Pro Bowl. Four members of the Broncos – TERRELL DAVIS, TOM NALEN, SHANNON SHARPE and NEIL SMITH – each earned an additional $25,000 for playing on the victorious AFC team to total $128,000 in postseason monies. Four Packers – LE ROY BUTLER, MARK CHMURA, TRAVIS JERVEY and DORSEY LEVENS – increased their earnings by $12,500 apiece to $87,500 by playing for the NFC squad.
1997 NFL POSTSEASON COMPENSATION
| AFC | PLAYER SHARES | TOTAL |
| Denver | 58 |
$5,971,000 |
| Pittsburgh | 58 |
2,685,000 |
| New England | 56 |
1,805,000 |
| Kansas City | 55 |
975,000 |
| Jacksonville | 59 |
715,000 |
| Miami | 60 |
600,000 |
| NFC | PLAYER SHARES |
TOTAL |
| Green Bay | 61 |
$4,400,000 |
| San Francisco | 58 |
2,667,500 |
| Tampa Bay | 59 |
1,565,000 |
| Minnesota | 60 |
1,540,000 |
| N.Y. Giants | 63 |
970,000 |
| Detroit | 60 |
662,500 |
| PLAYOFF TOTALS | 707 |
$24,556,000 |
| AFC-NFC PRO BOWL | PLAYER SHARES |
TOTAL |
30 * |
$587,500 |
|
| * Non-playoff players | ||
| TOTALS | 737 |
$25,143,500 |