“The $40 million man,” that’s how Steve Young’s agent, Leigh Steinberg, promoted the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback even before he entered the NFL. Young had just signed a four-year, $40 million contract with the USFL’s Los Angeles Express. The twist, however, was that the Express’ owner, J. William Oldenberg, had structured the deal in such a way that the whole amount was supposed to pay for over 40 years.

“I think 60,” Young said when asked about the age he was supposed to be paid. “And they added up all the annuity payments for all those years and then called it a $40 million. At the time, Wayne Gretzky was making $2 million, and Magic Johnson was making $2 million. And then I was making $40 million. That’s how it was promoted…I was a $40 million man. And I’m like, ‘It’s money that you get over 60 years, 40, 50 years. But I had every town I went to play in the USFL, there was a sign, ‘$40 million, you suck. You’re terrible.’

“And it’s a great story of my mom. They drove down from Connecticut to Washington, D.C., to see the USFL game. And I did something on the field, fumbled, or something, and a chant started in the corner of the stadium where she was, ‘$40 million down the drain.’ And the chant started to take the whole stadium, ‘$40 million down the drain.’ And my mom’s like, ‘She stands up and everyone around her, and she goes, ‘But it’s an annuity. It’s not $40 million. It’s just an annuity.'”

It was 1984. Young had two options: Either he could have signed a $3.5 million rookie contract after going first overall to the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1984 NFL draft, or he could have signed the historic $40 million deal to play in the USFL. Young chose the latter. However, Young received backlash for getting more than Magic Johnson, a two-time NBA champion.

But in reality, Young received only $4 million up front, along with base salaries of $200,000, $280,000, $330,000, and $400,000 over four years. The Express, however, remained obligated to pay him the remaining $30 million over the next 37 years, beginning when Young turned 28 and continuing until he turns 65.

Steve Young is currently 64, and his USFL contract was initially set to expire in 2027. However, because the deal was structured as an annuity, Young once again had two options. He could either fund the annuity and continue receiving larger payments through the final year of the contract in 2027, or accept the Express’ buyout option worth around $1 million. Young chose the latter and decided not to fund the annuity.

“We never funded the annuity. The owner was so crazy, it had to stay in his name for 45 years,” Young said. “So they gave me the option to take the money, which I think was $1 million bucks or $900,000 to fund the annuity — either take that money or fund the annuity — I just took the money. The whole idea of the annuity is false advertising.”

As that went down, the Los Angeles Times released a report, claiming that Steve Young made only $4.8 million after playing in the USFL. Eventually, Young found his way to enter the NFL when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed him. However, it was with the 49ers that Steve Young’s football career was never doubted, as he won three Super Bowl titles with the 49ers.