What do athletes do if they do not make the team roster?

Question

Hi I'm learning about football......I was watching HBO last night on the Dallas Cowboys and they were doing cuts/ They sent a couple of athletes home and told them they did a good job. So how do they (the cut athletes) get paid? Do they find another job until the next season? How do they support themselves? Does this happen every year to each player unless you have a contract?

Answer 1

They get cut (as you saw on HBO), but their playing days aren't over at that point (well for some it is).  A lot of players who get cut continue to work out and stay in playing shape as much as possible.  There is a chance the team that cut them, or another team in the NFL can call them up and sign them as the season progresses.  If a team gets a lot of injuries at one position they can sign guys who were previously cut to help add depth to their team.

I'm not sure if they get some kind of compensation financially when they are cut...  That's a good question.

Answer 2

this is a great question but i think they still get paid  

Answer 3

I'm sure they go out and find another job and then try out next season.

Answer 4

What dcnewco said.

except for the euro league dont exsist anymore

Answer 5

after they get cut they get a job just like any ordinary person and on thyeir free time they work out and get better. they wait till next year and try out for another team

Answer 6

They basically go out into the "real" world; unless another team signs them.

Answer 7

Unfortunately, NFL teams are limited to a certain number of players on their roster.  That means at the end of the pre-season teams must make cuts to get to the roster limit (64, I think).

The players that are cut will hope to get signed as a "free agent" with another team.  Some cut players will play with teams on a "practice squad" to brush up on their skills.  Others will play in the Canadian or European leagues.

If all else fails at football, most players did go to college and received degrees.  They will have to go to work everyday just like you and I and make an honest living.

It's a tough world out there, isn't it?

Answer 8

What dcnewco said.

Thats why you hear about guys like Warner stocking shelves in a grocery store the year before he started the Greatest Show on Turf.

Answer 9

Try out for another team.  Or get a real job.