NFL Families Get Real About the Cost of Football: Uniforms, Fines and More

Getty Images/Courtesy of Allison Kuch/Instagram

Not every NFL athlete is signing a multimillion-dollar declaration to play pro football, leaving their families to supplement their income elsewhere.

“I’ll conscionable acceptable the grounds straight: We person aggregate sources of income that we’ve built implicit the past 7 years,” Allison Kuch, who is joined to escaped agent Isaac Rochell, said connected a November 2023 occurrence of her “Sunday Sports Club” podcast. “Also, if you’re successful the NFL for 7 years and you request to instantly get a occupation the 2nd you’re cut, something’s not adding up.”

Kuch and Rochell, who welcomed girl Scottie successful December 2023, don’t conscionable trust connected his NFL wage — particularly portion helium remains unsigned. They besides person her podcast, his Husband PSA merchandise and assorted different societal media deals and endorsements that lend to their family’s income.

Jason Kelce, meanwhile, played each 14 seasons of his NFL vocation with the Philadelphia Eagles earlier retiring successful March 2024. He besides is an ESPN broadcaster and cohosts a “New Heights” podcast with member Travis Kelce. While the podcast was recently sold to Wondery for millions, Jason and woman Kylie Kelce inactive support their location beingness comparatively humble. (They stock 3 daughters, and arsenic of November 2024, are expecting babe No. 4.)

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“We marque definite that thing that we’re doing that they consciousness supported by their household and friends and past besides not truly putting them successful immoderate places of privilege,” Kylie exclusively told Us Weekly in June 2024. “[We’re] trying our champion to marque definite that erstwhile they turn up and they crook 16, they volition beryllium driving a [used vehicle]. We can’t fto them person a hand-me-down car astatine this point. You’re not getting dad’s [Tesla] CyberTruck arsenic your hand-me-down. You volition beryllium driving a basal model, hopefully, having to rotation the windows down with a crank.”

Keep scrolling for much astir the behind-the-scenes realities of the NFL and the stars’ finances:

Salary Talk

Courtesy of Bryce Watts/Instagram

Despite players similar Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott and Aaron Rodgers raking successful the large bucks, not each NFL contracts are created equal. Retired jock Chad Hansen’s wife, Bryce Watts Hansen, shut down the claims that “all NFL players are millionaires” successful a bid of December 2024 TikTok videos.

In fact, Bryce said that the mates lives successful a 700-square-foot flat with the aforesaid beat-up sofa they’ve kept since helium signed his rookie declaration with the New York Jets.

“He was connected 8 antithetic NFL teams, which means 8 antithetic contracts are being signed and broken,” she explained successful a video. “When you’re connected a team, it is bully wealth — nary substance [if you’re connected a] signifier squad oregon progressive roster, it is each bully money.”

She added, “But since contracts aren’t guaranteed … [once you are cut] you get nothing, particularly if you motion astatine the opening of the offseason and past you’re chopped during the offseason. You’re not seeing immoderate of that wealth due to the fact that you haven’t played again and again, you haven’t gone to practice.”

According to Bryce, they besides spent astir of his paychecks connected the costs associated with moving betwixt teams, and successful summation to doc appointments and different indispensable expenses.

“The costs truly bash commencement adding up, truthful you person to [decide], ‘We’re not gonna bargain caller furniture, we’d alternatively walk it connected thing for his assemblage oregon a betterment tool,’” Bryce added. “It ended up helping america and helping him.”

Dealing With Insurance

Courtesy of Allison Kuch/Instagram

Like immoderate employer, the NFL offers security to progressive players successful the league.

“They don’t adjacent get beingness insurance,” Kuch said successful a July 2024 TikTok video. “Some players who lone play 1 game, I get it, but Tom Brady? He’s lone insured for different 4 years.”

Kuch is connected Rochell’s plan, which “restarts” immoderate clip helium signs with a caller team.

“Last year, due to the fact that my hubby was employed by the Las Vegas Raiders, helium got security for the afloat employment year,” she said. “Since that employment twelvemonth is up, we get security for different 5 years. Every twelvemonth my hubby continues to play, it restarts different 5 years.”

So, adjacent though Rochell was chopped from the Raiders weeks earlier Kuch gave birth, her transportation measure was inactive covered by their security provider.

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The Cost of Uniforms

FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

According to Bryce, the athletes don’t get to support their jerseys without paying for them. She revealed successful different December 2024 TikTok that Chad lone purchased helmets for 2 of the 8 teams helium played for during his career.

“I deliberation the jerseys tin beryllium up to $600 oregon thing similar that, truthful erstwhile [athletes] swap aft the game, you person to wage for it,” she said. “He wished helium bought a helmet for a fewer more, but erstwhile you’re chopped the past happening you privation to bash is bargain a helmet that’s a mates 100 dollars.”

Providing Game Day Tickets

While galore NFL wives and their kids are staples astatine the shot games, it’s not ever casual to unafraid tickets.

“NFL tickets are not free, adjacent if your hubby oregon fellow is connected the team,” Bryce said successful a 3rd December 2024 TikTok video. “They get a acceptable magnitude and they person to get them transferred from different subordinate if they don’t get capable for household members — but they besides wage tax.”

According to Bryce, the tickets are scattered astir the stadium successful antithetic sections adjacent to different fans.

“You don’t get immoderate ‘primo’ front-row seat,” she explained. “Also, erstwhile you spot radical successful the box? Even the large players? They wage for them. They paid for those boxes, they don’t get them for free.”

Travis Kelce, for his part, spent upwards of $3 million for a container astatine the 2024 Super Bowl for woman Taylor Swift, some of their families and a slew of celebrated friends. The large game was played astatine Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium, which besides has a “Field Club” close connected the sidelines implicit with tables and vessel service.

“It’s a brainsick magnitude of wealth to get 1 of those booths successful the Field Club,” Kylie Cole, who is joined to Raiders punter AJ Cole, said connected Kuch’s podcast successful October 2024, confirming the seats merchantability for astir $30,000 per table.

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Over successful Los Angeles, Kelly Stafford has needed to wage for a suite to accommodate her and Rams backmost Matthew Stafford’s 4 daughters.

“There’s this conception successful the suite wherever the nutrient is and you tin beryllium and person a cocktail oregon thing to eat, and my kids are sitting determination coloring,” Kelly said connected her “Morning After” podcast successful October 2024. “I’m going, ‘Hey, there’s a crushed I bring you to these games. To beryllium honest, this is simply a wasted ticket. You could bash this astatine home, ticker connected TV and color.’”

Kelly added, “As overmuch arsenic I truly privation them to beryllium determination due to the fact that I cognize their dada wants them there, I’m besides like, americium I wasting wealth bringing you to these games?”

All Sorts of Fines

Courtesy of Chanen Johnson/Instagram

Many athletes person besides needed to allocate portion of their salaries to paying disconnected league debts.

“You tin get fined for a batch of antithetic things successful the NFL,” Saints prima Juwan Johnson’s wife, Chanen Johnson, said successful an October 2024 TikTok video. “The fines travel from either the NFL itself oregon from your squad specifically, similar if you’re precocious to a signifier oregon you’re precocious to a gathering … oregon bash thing successful a crippled that’s bad.”

According to Channel, Juwan has lone been fined for “failing a value test” for $2,000 passim his five-year NFL career.

The twelvemonth before, Rochell revealed connected his TikTok that successful his rookie twelvemonth with the Los Angeles Chargers helium was fined $30,000 for a tackle mid-game.

“Everyone successful the NFL knows if you person a FedEx bundle successful your locker, you’re getting fined,” Rochell quipped. “You’re paying somebody. I opened it up, and definite enough, it’s $30,000. Keep successful mind, astatine that constituent I was making $500 a week during grooming camp, truthful this was acold much than I adjacent made successful grooming camp.”

A Hierarchy Among the Wives

The player’s contracts adjacent impact the dynamics with the players’ spouses.

“For wives, for sure, [there’s a hierarchy]. It has varied squad to team, but if you deliberation of immoderate radical of 53 girls successful a room, you’re not gonna get on with each azygous 1 of them,” Kuch said connected “The Viall Files” podcast successful August 2024. “You’re gonna gravitate toward antithetic girls, whatever. There person been teams that [Isaac] has played for, wherever girls won’t springiness you the clip of time unless your hubby has a definite declaration size oregon if he’s a veteran.”

Rochell, for his part, stated that the aforesaid hierarchy exists successful the locker country too, but “it’s not arsenic bad.”

“I deliberation guys are chill,” helium said. “But there’s specified a quality successful however overmuch radical marque that it’s hard not to person that [be a thing]. Your teammate could beryllium making 30 times what you make. If you got a feline who’s making $4 cardinal a crippled and past maine — retrieve [I made] $7,000 each 2 weeks — helium doesn’t attraction astir me. There’s nary way. If he’s truly disquieted astir winning, he’s not disquieted astir Isaac connected [the] signifier squad [in] his rookie year.”