Warren Sapp

Warren Sapp is arguably one of the best defensive linemen of all time. He is remembered for his ferocious style of play and his intelligence of the game. Not everyone was a fan of him because he was often disrespectful with fans and reporters. But no one can deny his outstanding performance on the field. Sapp retired from the game in 2008 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013. At six feet two inches, 300-pounds, he was the quickest lineman of his time and also became one of the fastest players to blow all of his money. Warren Sapp filed for bankruptcy in April of 2012, less than five years after retiring from the NFL. Where did all his money go? Sapp was one of the highest paid defensive linemen of his era. “In his career, Sapp signed three contracts: The first was for $4.4 million. The second was for $36.05 million. The third was for $36.46 million (although he fulfilled only four of the seven years)” (Shelton). How could someone who earned over 70 million dollars go broke? Before filing for bankruptcy Sapp paid $75, 495 per month to support his ex-wife, Jamiko, and four other women in which he had children with (Kruse). In total, he has six children ranging in age from three to fourteen. His payments to his ex-wife are so high because they were determined at a time when he was making millions, and now he does not have the income to be able to pay off $876,000 (Kruse). Professional athletes often struggle in divorce hearings when they explain to the court that it is not reasonable to continue to pay the same amount for child support when their income is a fraction of what it used to be. Jamiko Sapp currently lives in an 18,000 square-foot, 4.1 million dollar estate in Orlando, Florida that once belonged to Warren. This house is full of unnecessary things such as an indoor water slide, a movie theater and a closet large enough to store two hundred and forty pairs of Nike shoes. Sapp lives in an exclusive 33rd floor condo in Hollywood

Cited: Shelton, Gary. "The best part of Warren Sapp 's legacy is gone, along with his fortune | Tampa Bay Times." Tampa Bay, Florida news | Tampa Bay Times/St. Pete Times. N.p., 9 Apr. 2012. Web. 19 Mar. 2013. . Astleford, Andrew. "Warren Sapp selected for Hall of Fame." Florida Sports News, FOXSportsFlorida.com. N.p., 2 Feb. 2013. Web. 19 Mar. 2013. . Whitley, David. “Warren Sapp’s sad bankruptcy auction not the first-or last-tale of Jocks Gone Broke.” Sporting News NFL. 2 Nov. 2012. Web 19 Mar. 2013. http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2012-11-02/warren-sapp-broke-fired-nfl-network-bankrupt-athletes-list Kruse, Michael. “The play-by-play of Warren Sapp’s 59-page bankruptcy filing.” Tampa Bay Times. 14 April 2012. Web. 19 Mar. 2013. http://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/the-play-by-play-of-warren-sapps-59-page-bankruptcy-filing/1225135 Farrey, Tom. “How to blow $5 million.” ESPN. 3 June 2000. Web. 19 Mar. 2013. http://espn.go.com/otl/dollars/wednesday.html