For NFL fans, 2022 was a swell year. Stadiums returned to capacity crowds after the 2022 flavour was shortened with limited omnipresence. Stadium parking lots were again filled with the enthusiastic anticipation of tailgaters and their barbequed camaraderie.

It was also a great yr for Bitcoin (BTC) investors equally the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization reached all-time high prices multiple times throughout 2022, somewhen topping out at $69,000 in early November. This led to a dramatic increase in media coverage of Bitcoin.

7 NFL players in 2022 decided to call the audible and begin either being paid in crypto or having their greenbacks salary partially converted to crypto. These players accept capitalized on the return of the regular season and the increased profitability of Bitcoin.

Aaron Rodgers

The reigning 2022 NFL MVP announced via a November. 1 video post on Twitter that he was partnering with Cash App payment service to take a portion of his salary in Bitcoin. Rodgers volition earn roughly $22.3 million this year.

The video depicted Rodgers dressed as John Wick for a Halloween party. If that wasn't strange enough, likely past design, Rodgers likewise told viewers that he would donate $1 million in BTC.

In Rodgers' case, he will have a portion of his bacon sent to his Cash App account, which he will and so use to purchase BTC.

The Twitter profile for the star quarterback for the Green Bay Packers features a picture of himself on the field during a game with the iconic laser eyes, further signaling his support for BTC.

Tom Brady

Tom Brady is another very high-profile NFL star quarterback who dabbled heavily in cryptocurrency in 2022. Brady has not nevertheless said that he is being paid in BTC past the NFL, simply he volition exist paid in crypto past FTX exchange after he took an equity stake in Sam Bankman-Fried'due south exchange, and will serve as a brand administrator.

Brady has not reserved himself to crypto avails alone, however. The iconic football star launched his own NFT platform, called Autograph, in April to attract the height talent in sports, entertainment, fashion and pop culture.

It doesn't end there for Brady and crypto, though. Tardily in Oct, Brady threw the 600th passing touchdown of his career, mark an all-fourth dimension high for the NFL, and helping to secure Brady's position as the all-time leading touchdown passer in the league's history. Brady paid i BTC to the fan who was initially given the ball by the receiver who completed the touchdown.

That BTC was worth about $62,000 at the time of the game, merely the ball itself may be worth over $500,000 according to Goldin Auctions sports memorabilia sale visitor.

Odell Beckham Jr.

Odell Beckham Jr. (OBJ) followed in Aaron Rodgers' footsteps by announcing tardily in November that he had partnered with Cash App to receive his salary from the NFL in BTC. His contract stipulates that he should receive virtually $4.25 million from the NFL this flavor.

The Los Angeles Rams' wide receiver told fans that he would requite back $one 1000000 in BTC as role of his new partnership with Cash App. Beckham appears to be no stranger to the crypto and NFT scene as his Twitter profile dons a Crypto Punk NFT.

In case y'all haven't noticed, Jack Dorsey's Greenbacks App is involved with both OBJ'south and Aaron Rodgers' BTC salary deal. The payment service app has had a great 2022 through the kickoff three quarters of the year past raking in almost $10 billion in revenue from 36 million active users and 100 million downloads.

Trevor Lawrence

The Carolina Panthers' new star quarterback joined the ranks of NFL superstars who are publicly accepting crypto payments. Lawrence's deal, however, is not with the NFL directly. The 2022 NFL top draft pick's crypto salary comes from an endorsement deal with the crypto portfolio app FTX (formerly Blockfolio).

The value of his deal has not been made public, but if Lawrence has been hodling his crypto earnings, there is a proficient chance he has enjoyed an appreciation in value, especially from the Solana (SOL) coins. The total crypto market cap has increased by virtually $500 billion since late Apr when the deal was announced.

Saquon Barkley

Saquon Barkley, the superstar running dorsum from the New York Giants, revealed in July that he was converting all of his endorsement pay into BTC. As with virtually others on this list, Barkley is not existence paid directly with crypto. Instead, he is swapping some of his greenbacks earnings for crypto.

Barkley is using the Strike payment app to acquire his BTC. He is not the first NFL actor to use Strike to buy BTC with his salary, however. Final year, former NFL offensive lineman Russel Okung became the first player to publicly share that he was using Strike to convert his NFL salary to BTC.

Barkley'south reasoning for trying to amass wealth with BTC revolved around the lack of longevity among NFL athletes. He told The All-time Business Evidence host Anthony Pompliano on July 15:

"When you see the KD's, the Lebrons and Bradys of the globe and you lot want to create generational wealth, you can't do that with the sport that I play and the position that I play and coming off of injuries. When you lot sit out of football for a whole year, you realize that this game could be taken away from you."

Sean Culkin

Kansas City Chiefs' tight stop Sean Culkin went public with his plans to catechumen his entire salary from the NFL into BTC. While others on this listing committed to converting only a portion of their salary into Bitcoin or being paid for endorsements with cryptos, Culkin is swapping 100% of his salary.

Like with Saquon Barkley, Culkin's reasoning for turning to crypto has to do with the short half-life mutual among players in the league. The average time nigh athletes spend in the NFL is three.3 years, according to Statista. Culkin said in a argument:

"Considering my career—particularly its concrete demands, and brevity–information technology makes the most sense to be paid in sound money that I believe protects its purchasing power over time."

Aaron Jones

Last but certainly not least on the list of NFL stars earning crypto is the Green Bay Packers' Aaron Jones. The running dorsum signed a deal with FTX to go an administrator for the commutation in September. Like with Tom Brady's deal, Jones purchased an equity stake in the exchange.

Jones will also integrate the FTX Pay platform into his ain clemency'south website to enable it to have crypto donations.