 May 24, 2010 -- After years of mystery and secrecy surrounding the terms of New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick's contract, Forbes magazine has discovered the three-time winning SuperBowl coach is the second-highest paid coach in all of sports.
The financial terms of Belichick's contract, which runs through 2013, have been closely guarded, but Forbes pegs him at $7.5 million annually. Belichick ranks only behind Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson.
Not surprisingly, all of the 10 highest-paid coaches hail from the NFL or NBA. They have a salary-boosting career option that coaches in Major League Baseball and other sports don't--a lucrative college business. Big-time coaching gigs in college football and basketball can pay as much as many pro jobs. Industry observers generally point to the hiring of college hoop hot-shots John Calipari by the New Jersey Nets and Rick Pitino by the Boston Celtics in the 1990s as the main triggers that sent NBA coaching salaries upward.
The other three NFL coaches represent two in new jobs and the longest-tenured.
Tied for third at $7 million are Washington Redskins coach Mike Shanahan and new Seattle Seahawks (and formerly of the Patriots and New York Jets) coach Pete Carroll. Tennessee Titans lifer Jeff Fisher is eighth at $5.75 million.
Other NBA coaches on the top 10 list: in slots six through eight are New York's Mike D'Antoni, San Antonio's Gregg Popovich and Golden State's Don Nelson, the league's all-time regular season wins leader, all making around $6 million per year.
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