Length of schedule

Although the NFL is hands down the most popular between the big 4 (NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL) it does have the least amount of games scheduled. This affects how much money the players take in. Based on per game statistics NFL players make a significantly larger amount. Physically football players cannot play 162 or 82 games in a season because each game requires so much preparation and rest. But this does not change the fact that NFL players are being put at high risk everytime they play. Also, the NFL has by far the most athletes in the sport with close to 1,700. The NBA consists of 450 players, the MLB has 750, and the NHL has 690. This greatly affects the amount of money each player is earning. If the money has to be split between more people then each person will end up getting less money.

Do NFL players recieve any benefits after they retire from football?

         http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ycn-10423863