Brady, Shaq Among Most Powerful Athletes
BOSTON (CBS) - Bloomberg Businessweek released its "Power 100 Ranking" of the most powerful athletes in sports. Boston has two of the top 10, but fans will not like who sits atop the list.
Colts Quarterback Peyton Manning took over the top spot, with Tom Brady and Shaquille O'Neal coming in at fifth and sixth respectively.
There is a solid Boston presence on the list. Along with Brady and Shaq, five other local athletes made the top 100, including two that were not ranked last year.
The Celtics take four of those spots. Kevin Garnett (47th), Paul Pierce (80th) and Rajon Rondo (98th) joined Shaq among sports most powerful. While KG and Pierce fell from 22nd and 59th respectively, Shaq climbed from ninth last year thanks to his move to Boston. Rondo made it on the list for the first time after signing a five-year, $55-million extension with the team. He also picked up sponsorships from Red Bull and Dunkin' Donuts.
Brady moved up from 30th thanks to his contract extension at the beginning of the season, making him the highest paid player in the NFL. Of his $30-million in earnings, Businessweek estimates $20-million is from endorsements.
He was the only Patriot to make the list.
Over on the baseball side two Red Sox earned spots. Both Jon Lester (56th) and David Ortiz (75th) made the Top 100 after being unranked last year.
Manning replaced Tigers Woods, who fell to third on the list after an unsuccessful year both on and off the golf course. Polls, player salaries and endorsements were taken into account when making up the list.
