Dreaded Words: `Career Ending' -- Insurance Protects Athletes

In the third quarter of the 1988 Orange Bowl, his last college game at University of Miami, running back Melvin Bratton tore ligaments and cartilage in his left knee. On that one play, he went from an almost certain first-round NFL draft choice to just another running back with a suspect knee.

Two years later, after a long, difficult rehabilitation, Bratton was drafted in the seventh round by the Denver Broncos and signed for considerably less money than he might otherwise have received. That is the worst nightmare of a top college athlete, seeing the big money of a pro contract disintegrate on one play. Many of them buy insurance policies for just such contingencies.

``Bratton had a policy,'' said Ron Kocian, who deals in insurance for athletes at Pro Management International, Inc. in Houston. ``But it didn't pay if his value was diminished, only if his career ended.''

So, with Bratton able to play - he finished his rookie season as Denver's starting fullback - no benefits were paid.

Then there was the case of Marcus Dupree, another running back, who signed a $6 million contract with the ill-fated USFL in 1984. Two years later, his career was ended because of a torn-up knee. That is the magic phrase in disability insurance for athletes - career-ending.

Lloyd's of London, which writes most of the disability policies, paid $4.5 million for Dupree's injury. ``It was our largest benefit,'' said Brian Burns, president of Pro Financial Services in Arlington Heights, Ill., which represents Lloyd's in the United States. ``The contract was insured by the team so it got the check. The club was in bankruptcy so most of it went to the creditors. I'm afraid Marcus didn't see much of it.''

Kocian said life insurance is unusual for young athletes unless a contract is guaranteed. ``We recently had a player who has a $13 million contract with a present value of $7 million. The team took life insurance to protect itself. For a premium of $3,500 a year, they'd be crazy not to.''

Kocian said he had written about 500 disability policies in the past eight years and paid some 15 claims, the largest $1.25 million to an NFL defensive back. Clubs buy the coverage only if contracts are guaranteed. Otherwise, players purchase it to protect themselves.

``They can buy coverage for $12 per $1,000 per year,'' Kocian said. ``A player like Troy Aikman, with a $12 million contract, the coverage would cost $12,000. He has everything in the world to lose on one hit. You never know when it's going to end.''

Improvement in sports medicine has reduced the cost of premiums. ``Without that,'' Burns said, ``I don't think anybody could afford the coverage. As it is, though, I don't think they can afford to be without it.''

A $1 million policy carries an $8,000 to $30,000 premium, depending on the sport and age of the athlete. For athletes in the prime of their careers, however, life insurance policies are rare.

``We have it available,'' Burns said. ``You don't figure you're going to die. But then, how many Giant players contracted cancer?''

Four New York Giants - Doug Kotar, Dan Lloyd, John Tuggle and Karl Nelson - got cancer and two died.

Burns' company insures between 50 and 60 college players and between 85 and 90 percent of pro football players. ``Most football contracts are not guaranteed so players insure themselves,'' he said.

Contracts that are guaranteed, however, are always insured by teams.

``It's necessary to relieve them of the amount of the contract,'' agent Bob Woolf said. ``In basketball, especially, contracts are guaranteed on and off the court, for accidents, death, anything. So the teams take out insurance to protect themselves.''

The NBA has a league-wide program that its broker, Roger Blumencranz of Lake Success, N.Y., calls unique in team sports. It covers the top six salaried players on each of the league's 27 franchises. ``The premium is the same for everybody, whether a guy is 22 or 32,'' Blumencranz said. Coverage kicks in after a player has missed 42 games and pays 80 percent of a disabled player's salary for five years.

That can be a substantial benefit for a player like Danny Manning, who missed 63 games with the Los Angeles Clippers with a torn-up knee after signing a $10.5 million contract as the NBA's No. 1 draft choice two years ago.

The premium of $35,000-$40,000 per $1 million of coverage seems almost bargain basement, considering the numbers involved. Blumencranz said he recently wrote a benefit check for $2.7 million representing the unexpired portion of a contract of a star player who was forced to retire because of disability.

According to Rich Hunter, director of operations for the NCAA, most member institutions insure athletes who might be injured during practice or in a game. ``That is not true life insurance, although a kid could do that,'' he said. ``A school typically carries only disability insurance.''