Caleb Williams has finally signed his rookie contract. It is official. He is a member of the Chicago Bears and is ready for training camp. That is great news for fans as they prepare for what could be an exciting season. What many may not know is the unorthodox challenges the organization had to deal with along the way. It became clear from the outset that Williams would do things differently. He didn’t have an agent, instead utilizing a board of directors made up of lawyers and other business experts.
Next came a range of unusual requests regarding the language of his contract. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk revealed that Williams was hoping to include a clause that would forbid the Bears from using the franchise tag after his fifth season. They refused. However, the creativity didn’t end there. Williams sought two other ways to get his money. One was through an LLC, or Limited Liability Company, which is basically a business structure. Another was through forgivable loans. Both were denied by the NFL.
The process, we’re told, included some creativity by Williams’s camp regarding tax issues.
For example, multiple sources tell PFT that there was an attempt to get Williams paid as an LLC. The Collective Bargaining Agreement doesn’t seem on the surface to foreclose that approach. However, the league decided that it does. The Bears were told by the NFL that the player’s money can’t go to a business entity other than the player.
Another approach emerged from the concept of a forgivable loan, which would have resulted in Williams getting the money tax-free until the loan was forgiven, as many as 10 years into the future. The Bears, through the NFL, also nixed that possibility.
The outside-the-box ideas aren’t crazy. Caleb’s father has worked for years in commercial real estate. The ideas he brought to the table were potentially revolutionary. Unfortunately, they never got off the ground.
One can’t fault him for trying to find ways to get as much of his money as possible. The overarching theme is an attempt to avoid taxes. LLCs shield owners from personal liability. That means creditors can’t pursue the owners’ personal assets, like their home, savings, or investments, to pay business debts. As for the forgivable loan, it would give Williams a chance to maximize his finances to a point where he could pay the taxes at a later date without having any additional wealth suffer the same fate.
Credit must go to Caleb Williams for trying. He is likely the first #1 overall pick to attempt such methods. It isn’t a surprise the NFL declined. Allowing such concessions would open a Pandora’s box for all future draft picks. The league has no desire to enter that quagmire. That is why they established the rookie wage scale in the first place. They want things kept as straightforward as possible. The player plays and gets his paycheck. It will be interesting to see if Williams revisits this approach in a few years when he’s up for a possible extension.
