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Table of Contents

Cover Story

Cover Story - Spanish Version

Mini-Lesson

Comprehension Quiz

Teacher's Guide and Worksheets

Deion's Big Deal

Deion Sanders made a great play last week, but it wasn't in a ball game. He landed the biggest bonus ever for signing a contract to play football: $13 million! The Dallas Cowboys agreed to pay him $35 million over seven years. Nice catch.

"I don't do it just for extra money," said Sanders. "I truly love the game."

Sanders is awesome. He was Defensive Player of the Year in 1994 when he played for the San Francisco 49ers. He's so good, some teams avoid throwing a pass anywhere near him. But is that worth $35 million? Even President Clinton makes only $200,000 a year!

On the other hand, lots of people who can't catch or throw a ball make big bucks from football. Team owners make millions of dollars not only from ticket sales but also from selling the rights to broadcast games on TV. If "Neon Deion" helps his team win the Super Bowl, ticket and souvenir sales will go up. That's more money for the team's owners.

But some fans say money overshadows the thrill of the game. Last year money problems between players and team owners threatened baseball, basketball and hockey. Attendance at major league baseball games has been down this year, and many say it's because fans are mad that players went on strike last year.

Will greed ruin the fun of pro sports? Should players get as much cash as they can? What do you think?

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