As many of you know, Home DepotCEO Bob Nardelli was booted yesterday - to a $210 million severance package. If he was an athlete (he actually was a star football player at Western Illinois), that would mean this contract would be the second largest in sports history in total value behind A-Rod's 10-year, $252 million deal he signed in 2000 and that's to play, not - as Nardelli's situation commands - to NOT "play." Including his severance, stock options and salary, it's estimated he made $360 million in six years. That's $60 million a year, about double what the Chicago Bulls paid Michael Jordan for a couple years in the late '90s - the all time single-season salary record.
Fans and shareholders alike complain about salaries of their top stars, even though ticket prices aren't technically affected by payroll and neither is stock price.
Its hard to say what people are worth. But Nardelli certainly wasn't A-Rod or Jordan.
With an extreme sports interest, expect Nardelli to take some of that cash and invest it in sports - either NASCAR or football. Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank is already the owner of the Atlanta Falcons.
By the way, for those of you interested in sports salaries, I'm on the West Coast this week to bring you the story of MLB superagent Scott Boras. The piece, with interviews from San Francisco Giants COO Larry Baer, the Giants new $126 million man and Boras client Barry Zito, and Boras himself. The piece will run all day, starting on "Squawk Box" on Friday.
Evaluating the Press Conferences:
Let's take a look at the conferences that happened over the past two days - Miami Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga's conference yesterday announcing head coach Nick Saban would leave and Saban's conference today at Alabama.
