A Denver Broncos cheerleader’s second job is turning into a bigger conversation about NFL pay, and fans are not being quiet about it.
Ann-Marie Muscarello has drawn attention online after sharing that she cheers on the weekend and works as a registered nurse during the week. The split schedule reflects the reality she’s dealing with: as an NFL cheerleader, she doesn’t make enough to support herself on that job alone.
Her post put that contrast front and center: “Sunday mornings vs. Monday mornings look a little different 👩🏽⚕️📣✨☕️,” she wrote.
That wasn’t the only reaction. Another NFL cheerleader pointed out that the issue stretches far beyond one team, saying: “There are so many of these stories. We deserve to be paid much, much more.”
The response from fans has been loud and sympathetic, with many taking to social media to demand better pay for cheerleaders across the league. In many cases, they’re making only a few hundred dollars per game, and plenty of fans say that doesn’t come close to matching the work involved.
“With the money the NFL makes, they should pay you more,” one fan wrote.
“How do you keep up with it all?!” another fan said.
“That’s sad. They should pay these cheerleaders enough money they work hard too,” another user added.
“Dang bet you’re way too busy 😂” someone added on Instagram.
“Love your double life! You are inspiring and motivating to young women everywhere!!” another commented.
One fan went further, laying out the pay gap in blunt terms. “The Broncos are worth $6.55 billion.
Their cheerleaders, like most in the league, are independent contractors paid an hourly rate for practice and a flat fee on game day. Across the NFL that works out to roughly $22,500 a year.
The median registered nurse makes $97,550. So the framing is backwards.
Nursing is the career. Dancing for a multibillion dollar franchise is the thing she can only afford to do because nursing pays the rent.
The one squad that broke the pattern proves the point. Dallas cheerleaders got a 400% raise in 2025, and it happened only after a Netflix docuseries showed millions of viewers what they were actually earning.
Veterans there can now make $75 an hour,” Aakash Gupta shared.
The viral reaction has now put one simple question back in the spotlight: should NFL cheerleaders be paid more?
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