What is the NFL's 2nd Highest-Paid Position?
The Immensely Important Role of Accounts Payable
Posted by Rakesh Shukla on Fri, Sep 26, 2008 @ 12:03 PM
That's my 11-year-old son playing quarterback in his first-ever football game last weekend. This was a pass play -- he confidently called the play in the huddle, made sure his teammates were lined up properly, executed a good snap with his center ... and then things got ugly. What happened next made me acutely aware of the importance of a crucial position in football.
Any guesses what position this is? Here's a hint: this position gets paid the highest salary in pro football, after quarterback.
Running back?
... Nope.
Wide Receiver?
... Nope.
Defensive lineman, linebacker or cornerback?
... Nope, Nope & Nope.
The 2nd highest-paid position in pro football is ... left offensive tackle. Huh??? Yup, the anonymous, 300lb hulk on the left side of the offensive line.
As chronicled in Michael Lewis's superbly entertaining book The Blind Side, over the years, the NFL gradually recognized the immensely important role that offensive left tackles play in defending the quarterback from devastating blind-side hits - and thus protecting the QB from a season or career ending injury.
So what happened to my son? Yup, he suffered a bone-crunching sack from the blind-side. He never saw the hit coming. Thankfully, he didn't get hurt.
If you think about it, a strong AP department with robust internal controls also prevents devasting blind-side hits such as fraud, inaccurate financial statements and delayed period end closes.
In many ways, Accounts Payable Professionals are like football lineman.
Being a lineman in football is a thankless job. If you do a good job of blocking and tackling, you don't get noticed but if you miss a tackle or a miss a block, everyone notices! The quarterback gets sacked, the other team scores, etc.
Similarly, when AP does a good job, nobody notices. But when bills are paid late or incorrectly, finance management gets upset, vendors get angry and line of business managers lose patience.
It took the NFL a while to wake up and recognize the true value of left tackles ... hopefully, upper management will someday appreciate the crucial blocking and tackling that AP executes day-in and day-out and reward AP Professionals accordingly.
-Rakesh Shukla
P.S. The Blind Side is much more than a "sports book." It is an incredible human interest story about a homeless boy named Michael Oher. If you haven't read the book, this interview with the author, Michael Lewis, is definitely worth a look: