‘Knox signed with Buffalo for a reported $200,000 a year. Adjusting for inflation, that’s about $650,000 in today’s dollars. Don Shula made $75,000 during Miami’s perfect season of 1972. That’s $382,000 in today’s money. (Shula also had an ownership stake in the team.) Salaries for players took a huge boost a few years before those for coaches. The average player salary, for example, went from $196,000 in 1986 to $800,000 in 1993.’