Matt Flynn Earned Himself $20 Million From One Game

Published on June 13th, 2021 3:18 pm EST
Written By: Dave Manuel


One fateful game that made a big financial change in quarterbacks life.  The story. Matt Flynn was never expected to amount to very much in the NFL.

After all, the LSU Tigers quarterback was selected in the 7th round (209th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft.

The Packers had zero aspirations of Flynn ever being a starting quarterback. After all, the team had Aaron Rodgers.

Instead, the Packers were looking for a backup quarterback, and Flynn had to battle Brian Brohm to win the role.

Flynn wasn't fast. Flynn didn't have a strong arm. His pre-draft measurables weren't impressive, and he was firmly installed as the backup behind Aaron Rodgers.

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After a few years of serving as Aaron Rodgers' back-up, things changed for Matt Flynn at the end of the 2011 season.

January 1st, 2012 was the day that would change Matt Flynn's life forever.

Flynn was given the start against the Detroit Lions on that day, as the Packers had already sewn up the top spot in the NFC, as they were 14-1 heading into the final game of the season.

Matt Flynn was in his contract year and had only had a couple of NFL starts, so he wanted to show what he could do.

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Matt Flynn would absolutely go off on that fateful January day, putting up this unbelievable stat line against the Detroit Lions:

31/44, 480 yards, 6 TD, 1 INT

Jordy Nelson would be the primary beneficiary of Flynn's onslaught, as he would catch 9 balls for 162 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Flynn punctuated his effort with a last-minute touchdown pass to Jermichael Finley to give the Packers the victory.

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Flynn would watch the rest of the season from the sidelines, though he would enter the offseason as a free agent with a suddenly much increased profile.

Suddenly, Matt Flynn wasn't the career back-up quarterback. He was looking like the starter who was stuck behind Aaron Rodgers, a future Hall of Famer.

The Seattle Seahawks desperately needed a quarterback and signed Flynn to a three-year, $20.5 million with $9 million in guaranteed money.

In another funny twist to the story, the Seahawks drafted somebody in the third round that year by the name of Russell Wilson.

Despite signing Flynn to a $20.5 million deal, the Seahawks would eventually name Russell Wilson as their starter, and Wilson would become one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

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The Seahawks would eventually trade Flynn to the Raiders, who would release him just six months after trading for him.

After that, Flynn would eventually play for five more teams (including the Packers again) before eventually retiring at the end of the 2015 season.

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Matt Flynn threw for 6 touchdowns in one game and then signed a $20.5 million deal.

After that fateful game, Flynn would only throw for eight more touchdown passes over the rest of his career.

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Flynn didn't earn the entirety of his $20.5 million contract with the Seahawks, as only $9 million was guaranteed.

Flynn did, however, parlay one very good game in the NFL into nearly $16 million in total lifetime earnings, which is a very nice piece of work.

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