Former NFL Receiver Speaks Out Against Rookie Hazing

The NFL does have great traditions like Thanksgiving football and the Super Bowl.

Families often gather for dinner while watching the games on these dates.

It’s the part of the year wherein everyone knows what they are doing or what happened during the game.

But in contrast, there are also traditions that must be ended.

One of them is going full contact during voluntary OTAs.

While the league specifies that full contact isn’t allowed, some teams are caught doing the opposite.

They could not care less about the fines and the reduction of their OTAs because those are minor sanctions.

Then there’s the practice of letting rookies pay for expensive dinners.

Fred Taylor went on the record to share that Tom Brady would buy expensive bottles of wine and let rookies pay for them.

But for Torrey Smith, this tradition has to stop.

Rookie dinners are BS! I’m glad I had an OG that realized teaching me to blow money is STUPID! It does not prove you belong on a team. Shout out to @AnquanBoldin !

Dudes come into the league with no financial literacy and real problems but folks think 50k dinners are cool! NAH!

— Torrey Smith (@TorreySmithWR) June 21, 2022

Smith tweeted, “Rookie dinners are BS! I’m glad I had an OG that realized teaching me to blow money is STUPID! It does not prove you belong on a team. Shout out to @AnquanBoldin! Dudes come into the league with no financial literacy and real problems but folks think 50k dinners are cool! NAH!”

Smith Is Spot On

He has a point because not all NFL players earn top dollar, especially rookies who have to work for their lucrative contract extensions.

Likewise, those taken in the later rounds are set to receive lesser offers.

Worst yet, not all contracts are fully guaranteed and they will only get a portion of what’s written in their contracts.

If their careers are suddenly over and they don’t have much money in the bank, they’re doomed.

Therefore, it should be the veterans setting an example by treating the rookies to dinner.

They have more financial windfall to absorb expensive dinners.