The Seattle Seahawks on Thursday added a new twist to the NFL tradition known as the rookie dinner.
Typically, an entire NFL team or position group goes out to dinner at some point during the season and saddles their rookies with the entire bill, doing everything they can to raise the total to exorbitant levels. Think of the most expensive cut of meat on the menu, with a lobster tail on the side, washed down with a rare cognac, wine or whiskey, and then add a few more dishes.
Being financially responsible for the luxurious appetites of dozens of men, some of whom maintain a weight of over 300 pounds, is dangerous territory. He’s just not as dangerous as the Seahawks rookies initially thought.
Somehow, Seahawks veterans managed to produce a fake receipt for rookie Byron Murphy II that read a total of $155,788.77. The result: some screams and a shocked face from Murphy.
In reality, the check was for $38,015.82, which isn’t exactly like ordering off the value menu. Highlights include $9,600 for eight shots of D’Usse 1969 cognac, $8,050 for 23 shots of Louis XIII cognac (it’s always the liquor that gets you), two $750 A5 wagyu steaks and a pair $115 caviar orders.
Plus a $4 glass of Sprite for Murphy or some guy who didn’t understand the assignment.
The good news for Murphy is that his $16 million rookie contract isn’t going anywhere. Rookie dinners are so infamous these days that rookies know to prepare for them (with the exception of Garrett Wilson), and $38,000 is not outside the norm of what we tend to see.
However, it is still financial hazing and some teams avoid this practice, as it is popularly known. The San Francisco 49ers made a similar move a couple of years ago, for a made-up sum of $300,000, but ended up charging their rookies only about $4,500. Ultimately, it’s up to a team’s veterans whether they do it or not, as rookies clearly have no choice.