The embrace of ZERO has not only changed the college football landscape, but also the professional scene. During an appearance on The triple optionNFL Commissioner Roger Goodell analyzed how NIL affected players’ advancement to the professional league.
“It brings a lot of responsibility at an earlier age, and I think it probably puts a lot of responsibility on colleges to make sure kids understand that and are prepared for it. It changes the dynamic,” Goodell said“The zeros are getting pretty big and the impact of making bad decisions is pretty serious for a young man and his family, so they need to be prepared for that.
“The more we can help and support colleges to make sure our transition programs can potentially be applied to them, the better that probably is, because it’s a big jump from college football to the NFL. This probably reduces the jump a little bit because it’s one less transition, but it’s still big.”
NIL has provided athletes with metaphorical training wheels before they received the multimillion-dollar contracts that are common at the next level. While several college athletes like for example Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders or Texas QB Arch Manning already achieve similar amounts, but most players do not.
Still, each salary is essentially more than what a player made in high school. That money gives them the opportunity to learn how to invest, save and spend properly – three habits that only become more important when there’s more money at stake.
Roger Goodell knows that the NFL can only benefit if the NCAA successfully helps its athletes.
“We believe in a strong college football system,” Goodell said. “We also believe that players are better prepared for the NFL when they not only have additional college football experience, but also really have exposure to the educational system, which is even more important, to get that degree. Or, even if you don’t get the degree, hopefully get close enough to be able to get it again.”
“A lot of our players do that,” Goodell continued. “I think that’s a good thing for us because it shows that the kids are staying. They’re not making that choice. They’re going to say, ‘I’m going to go back and play another year of college football.’ We always think that’s great. We’re going to support that every day. I’m really proud of our eligibility policy and proud of the fact that we want our kids to stay in college football as long as possible.”
