Michael Oher Net Worth (Money & Salary)

What Is Michael Oher’s Net Worth and Salary?

An American football offensive tackle, Michael Oher, boasts a net worth of $12 million. Rising from a background of homelessness as a teenager, he was welcomed into a wealthy family that propelled him into becoming a star offensive tackle, first in college and then in the NFL. In the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft, the Baltimore Ravens selected Oher, and he played a pivotal role in their victory in Super Bowl XLVII during his rookie season. After playing with the Ravens for four seasons, he signed with the Tennessee Titans in 2014 for two seasons before moving to the Carolina Panthers in 2017. Oher concluded his NFL career in 2017.

As is commonly known, Michael Oher’s remarkable life story was depicted in the acclaimed 2009 film “The Blind Side,” which featured Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw as his adoptive parents, Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy, with Quinton Aaron portraying Michael.

Contracts, Salary, and Career Earnings

Throughout his tenure in the NFL, Michael Oher accrued a total salary of $34 million.

Upon entering the league, he secured a 5-year contract valued at $13.495 million with the Ravens, which included a guaranteed $6.88 million. In his rookie year, he earned $310,000, supplemented by a signing bonus of $942,000.

Before the 2014 season, Oher signed a 4-year agreement worth $20 million with the Tennessee Titans, including a $4 million signing bonus and $9.35 million in guaranteed money. He was released by the Titans in February 2015 and later signed a 2-year contract with the Carolina Panthers for $7 million, which also featured a $2.5 million bonus and $2.5 million guaranteed.

His last NFL deal, finalized in 2016 with the Panthers, was a 3-year agreement totaling $21.6 million, inclusive of a $4 million signing bonus and $9.5 million guaranteed. Unfortunately, he was released by the Panthers in July 2017 due to failing a physical examination.

2023 Complaint Against the Tuohy Family

On August 14, 2023, news broke that Michael had filed a startling petition in a Tennessee court, alleging that the essence of “The Blind Side” was a fabricated story created by the Tuohy family to profit at his expense. The filing sought to terminate the conservatorship held by Sean and Leigh Anne, claiming he deserves a reasonable portion of the film’s profits, alongside compensatory and punitive damages, as well as preventing the couple from using his name for future projects.

Among several startling claims, Michael’s petition asserted that he was never formally adopted by Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy but was instead placed under a conservatorship. This distinction is crucial, as it implies he had no familial ties to the Tuohys and allowed them to negotiate deals in his name, allegedly without granting him any royalties from projects featuring his name and likeness. According to the petition, the Tuohy family reached a deal that compensated both parents and their two children, Sean Jr. and Collins, a total of $225,000 along with 2.5% of “defined net proceeds” derived from “The Blind Side” through box office sales, DVD sales, and streaming revenue.

“The Blind Side” achieved remarkable success, earning $300 million at the box office from a modest budget of $30 million. Analysis of standard film profit distributions suggests net proceeds could be estimated at around $150 million. If accurate, each of the Tuohy family members could have received $225,000 PLUS $3.75 million in royalties over time, based solely on box office earnings, excluding additional income from DVD and streaming platforms.

Michael’s petition contends that he received none of this money while the Tuohy family amassed considerable wealth. Furthermore, Oher alleged that in 2007 he was coerced into signing a contract.that awarded 20th Century Fox the life rights to his narrative “without any payment whatsoever.“

This is in contrast to claims made by Leigh Anne in her 2010 publication, “In a Heartbeat: Sharing the Power of Cheerful Giving.” In this book, she asserted that the earnings from the film were divided “five ways.” However, Michael’s petition states that he never received any financial compensation from the movie.

“The Blind Side” Royalties

Following his allegations, Alcon— the studio behind “The Blind Side”— issued a statement detailing the amount paid to Oher and the Tuohys. From the statement:

“Alcon has disbursed around $767,000 to the talent agency that represents the Tuohy family and Michael Oher.”… It is presumed that the agency took a 10% commission before passing the royalties along… “We expect that the Tuohys and Michael Oher will receive further profits as audiences continue to appreciate this true story in the future.”

With a bit of quick calculation, after the talent agency’s 10% commission, we arrive at $690,000 available for division among the four members of the Tuohy family and Michael Oher. This results in $138,000 per individual, before taxes.

Early Life

Michael Oher was born on May 28, 1986, in Memphis, Tennessee. He is the son of Denise Oher, who struggled with alcoholism and crack cocaine addiction, and Michael Jerome Williams, who spent much of his time incarcerated. Due to this challenging upbringing, Michael lacked both attention and discipline throughout his early years. He repeated the first and second grades and attended eleven different schools within his first nine years of education. By the age of seven, he was placed in foster care, experiencing a series of foster homes along with spells of homelessness. Michael’s biological father, a former cellmate of Denise Oher’s brother, was murdered during his imprisonment when Michael was in his senior year of high school. Ultimately, at the age of 16, Michael Oher was welcomed into the home of Sean Tuohy and Leigh Anne Tuohy, who would become his legal guardians when he turned 17. To support his education, they employed a tutor to help him with schoolwork for 20 hours a week.

High School

Oher’s football journey commenced during his freshman year at a public high school in Memphis. By his junior year, he began to stand out in football. In 2003, Michael earned the accolade of Division II Lineman of the Year and was also named First Team Tennessee All-State. Additionally, he received two letters each in both track and basketball. As he entered his senior year, Oher held the position of starting left tackle on the varsity football team. He was also a state runner-up in discus during his senior year. Initially, Oher’s low academic performance posed a challenge to his acceptance into an NCAA program, but he was able to elevate his GPA from 0.76 to 2.52 to qualify for a Division 1 institution. This was achieved by enrolling in online courses at Brigham Young University and replacing earlier grades of Ds and Fs with As, ultimately raising his graduating GPA above the required minimum. Consequently, Michael became a premier football prospect in Tennessee, leading to numerous scholarship offers.receiving scholarship offers from schools within Division 1, ultimately deciding to play college football for the Ole Miss Rebels at the University of Mississippi. He had previously been approached by Tennessee, LSU, Alabama, Auburn, and South Carolina.

College Career

In his debut season with the Ole Miss Rebels, Oher played as a guard in ten games, quickly earning recognition as a first-team freshman All-American. Moving to the left tackle position for the 2006 season, he received multiple preseason All-Conference and All-American accolades. After his sophomore year, he was recognized as a second-team Southeastern Conference offensive lineman and then later as a first-team SEC offensive lineman following his junior year. Academically, Oher excelled at Ole Miss, showing a significant increase of 30 points in his tested IQ score from his childhood to his college years. He achieved honor roll status during his sophomore year. In January 2008, Oher announced his intention to declare for the 2008 NFL draft, but just two days later, he opted to withdraw from the draft to complete his senior year at Ole Miss. Following the 2008 season, he was unanimously named a first-team All-American and secured honor roll recognition for the second time in his college career. Graduating with a degree in Criminal Justice in spring 2009, he concluded his college football journey with numerous awards and prestigious honors.

Pro Career

Before his graduation, Oher was already anticipated to be among the top prospects for the 2009 NFL Draft. The Baltimore Ravens selected him with the 23rd pick in the first round, having acquired that pick from the New England Patriots in a deal that swapped their first and fifth-round selections. His adoptive family, the Tuohys, were present to celebrate his selection on draft day. Michael signed a five-year, $13.8 million contract with the Ravens on July 30, 2009. He began the 2009 season as a right tackle but switched to left tackle due to an injury suffered by lineman Jared Gaither, eventually transitioning back to right tackle after eight weeks. Throughout the 2009 season, he started every game, alternating between tackle positions. In his first postseason game in January 2010 against the New England Patriots, he played right tackle without conceding a sack, contributing to the Ravens’ 33-13 victory. Michael finished second in the voting for the Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, receiving six votes. In February 2013, he celebrated his first Super Bowl victory as the Ravens triumphed over the San Francisco 49ers 34-31 in Super Bowl XLVII.

In March 2014, Oher signed a four-year, $20 million contract with the Tennessee Titans. He started eleven games for the team but was placed on injured reserve on December 13 after missing two previous games due to a toe injury. Pro Football Focus ranked him as the 74th-best tackle out of 78 for the 2014 season. The Titans released Oher on February 5, 2015.

Just a month later, he agreed to a two-year, $7 million contract with the Carolina Panthers. Citing Cam Newton as a significant influence, he chose to join Carolina. He ultimately ended up

One of his best professional seasons saw him protecting Newton’s blind side. Despite previous challenges in Tennessee, he was named the starting left tackle at the beginning of the season, with Panthers GM Dave Gettleman remarking: “We did our homework on Michael, and we feel very strongly that he can be an answer for us. He’ll be inserted at left tackle, and we’ll go from there.” Oher took to the field for 98.4% of the team’s plays and incurred only three penalties for a total of 25 yards.

On February 7, 2016, Oher participated in the Super Bowl as a member of the Panthers, who unfortunately lost to the Denver Broncos with a score of 24-10.

In June 2016, he agreed to a three-year contract extension with the Panthers valued at $21.6 million, including $9.5 million that was guaranteed. Unfortunately, he sustained a concussion just three games into the season and was subsequently placed on injured reserve on November 25, 2016. Regrettably, he was released by the Panthers on July 20, 2017, following a failed physical examination.

Personal Life

Michael Oher began his romantic relationship with Tiffany Roy after they met at the University of Mississippi. Together, they have welcomed four children: two sons and two daughters. After 17 years together, the couple got engaged in July 2021 and tied the knot on November 5, 2022, in Nashville, Tennessee.

Despite the acclaim of “The Blind Side” film, Oher expressed disappointment, indicating that it had a negative impact on his football career. He noted in his 2011 autobiography “I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to ‘The Blind Side’ and Beyond,” that he was far more extroverted than the film portrayed and emphasized that his understanding of football predated the Tuohys’ involvement in his life.

In May 2014, after signing with the Tennessee Titans, Oher bought a home in Brentwood for $1.3 million.