Top 10 Worst Contracts in History

Aug 14, 2007

Sometimes a big contract doesn't mean a big return. Players can look at all that money and they decide to get soft or maybe they feel too much pressure to perform. Sometimes athletes will go beyond their limits and injure themselves. We look at some of the worst contracts in sports history!

#10. Worst Contracts - Grant Hill

This pick should not be blamed too heavily on the Orlando Magic who signed Grant Hill to a seven-year, $93 million contract. At the time Hill was one of the best players in the league, but injuries plagued his career in Orlando and he only played in 47 games in his first four seasons! He was traded to the Phoenix Suns in 2007 and has been playing a little bit better, but he still is not worth the BIG money.

Magic Mash

#9. Worst Contracts - Ryan Leaf

Ryan Leaf may be the biggest bust in NFL history. The Indianapolis Colts almost picked Leaf over current superstar Peyton Manning with the first overall pick in the 1998 Draft. Instead the San Diego Chargers chose him with the second pick, and signed him to a four-year, $32.5 million contract. Leaf lasted only four unproductive seasons, while Manning became the best quarterback in the game.

Ryan Rong

#8. Worst Contracts – Rick DiPietro

In 2006 the New York Islanders signed Rick to a 15-year, $67.5 million contract. The team is losing every year and Rick always seems to be injured. The franchise is desperate for money or they're moving to Kansas City.

Rick Wrong

#7. Worst Contracts - Rick Pitino

In 1997, the Boston Celtics signed Rick Pitino to a seven-year, $70 million contract, but Pitino wasn't a player - he was the coach. The legendary University of Kentucky coach was brought to bring the Celtics back to glory. The exact opposite happened, as the Celtics failed to make the playoffs in his four-year tenure. He was canned in 2001.

Pity Pitino

#6. Worst Contracts – Larry Hughes

Larry got 70 million for 5 years from the Cleveland Cavaliers to make him the right-hand man for their franchise player Lebron James. Well Larry really didn’t help Lebron or Lebron didn’t help Larry and now look at Cleveland. They’ve lost Lebron to Miami without even getting to a NBA Finals.

Horrible Hughes

#5. Worst Contracts – Michael Vick

Michael was given a 137 million dollar contract for 10 years with the Atlanta Falcons, but he did not disappoint anyone on the football field. However he did end up disappointing everyone on the streets. Michael ended up going to prison for 2 years for running a dogfighting ring. Fortunately for the Falcons they didn’t have to pay him his salary anymore.

Michael Mourning

#4. Worst Contracts - Alex Rodriguez

A 10-year, $252 million contract contract from the Texas Rangers had to be really disappointing when A-Rod was unable to lead the team to the World Series. It was just bad news for Texas as they ended up trading Alex to the New York Yankees where Alex won the MVP twice and went on to win the 2009 World Series. Texas even had to pay 67 million of A-Rod’s contract with New York… Oops!

A-Rong

#3. Worst Contracts – Ben Wallace

In 2006, the Chicago Bulls thought they needed a big man to fill a gap so they made Ben a 60 million dollar contract over 4 years. After a few injuries and only 6-points average per game, the Bulls soon realized that this was a huge mistake. They traded him to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2008 eating $30 million.

Ben Bloop

#2. Worst Contracts - David Beckham

The 5 year 250 million dollar contract to bring soccer to the States worked just as much as Posh bringing back the spice in her Girl Band career. The LA Galaxy fans are angry with David and they don’t even want him back after David seemed to be only a part-time player injured most of the time.

Beckham Unwelcomed

#1. Worst Contracts- Jamarcus Russell

In 2007 the Oakland Raiders handed Jamarcus a 68 million dollar contract over 6 years. He was picked number one overall at the 2007 draft and expected to bring life back to the Raiders as a franchise quarterback. One problem… he doesn’t care about football anymore. He gained weight immediately after the draft and now weighs 300 pounds. He’s been cut and the Raiders will have to eat millions.

Jamunchies