Bachelor Nation fans may be surprised to learn that what Mel did for a living before he became the Golden Bachelor paid way more than his ABC salary as The Bachelor franchise’s new lead.
Mel Owens, a 66-year-old lawyer and a retired NFL linebacker from Laguna Hills, California, was announced as the Season 2 Golden Bachelor on April 2025. However, less than two months later, he faced backlash for an interview he gave on the “MGoBlue Podcasts With Jon Jansen,” in which he claimed that the oldest woman he would date on The Golden Bachelor would be 60 years old when the producers asked, “What’s your preferences?” “I just said, ’45 to 60,’ just being honest,” Mel said on the podcast. “‘If they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them.’ This is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor.”
Related: All The Golden Bachelor Season 2 spoilers about Mel
He continued, “[The executive producer] goes, ‘But they’re going to be hot, don’t worry about it, don’t worry about it.’ He goes, ‘You can’t use the word cut,’ I go, ‘That’s an NFL term…’ They’ve got to be fit, because I stay in shape and workout and stuff. And I told them to try to stay away from the artificial hips and the wigs.”
After his interview, Mel faced backlash from Bachelor Nation, with Reality Steve reporting that ABC was considering replacing him as the Golden Bachelor. Mel apologized for his comments in an interview with Glamour in August 2025, in which he recalled a conversation between him and a 65-year-old female friend who called him out.
“She said, ‘What you said was insensitive, and it’s just not who you are.’ My reference of dating was 39, 40 years old. I hadn’t dated in 26, 27 years. That’s what I told her,” he said. “She goes, ‘It doesn’t matter. You’ve said some things that are just incredibly wrong.’ And I go, ‘I’ve got to apologize.’”
He continued, “I didn’t know anything about the Golden Bachelor ages. I didn’t know the age range because I wasn’t watching it. I’m thinking, to me, the age range was 45 to 60. That’s my age range. I’m thinking that’s the gold years for me. My reference, again, was when I was dating at 39, 40. I hadn’t dated in 26 years, so I had no clue. And that’s why I said that comment.”
What did Mel do for a living before The Golden Bachelor?
Before he became the Season 2 Golden Bachelor, Mel was a professional football player and linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League. He was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the first round (ninth overall pick) of the 1981 NFL draft and played nine seasons with the team until his retirement in 1989. Mel signed onto the Los Angeles Rams in 1981 with a contract worth $175,000 per season. He was also named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week by the NFL in 1986.
After his retirement from the NFL, Mel explored several industries before landing his second career as a sports attorney. Following his time with the Los Angeles Rams, Mel launched a clothing line called Evolution Wear, as well as operated a nationwide restaurant reservation hotline called 1-800-LETS-EAT. He also worked as a financial advisor at Merill Lynch & Co. after passing the Series 7 Exam.
His most notable post-NFL job, however, was as a founding partner of the law firm, Namanny, Byrne & Owens, in Laguna Hills, California, where he specialized in sports law, workers’ compensation, sports injuries, and disability benefits. Throughout his career, Mel represented more than 250 football players in workers’ compensation claims caused by football-related injuries. One of his most notable cases was a 2013 brain-injury lawsuit by multiple professional hockey players against the National Hockey League, which he was one of the lead attorneys on.
What college did Mel from The Golden Bachelor go to?
Mel attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, from 1976 to 1980, where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science. While at the University of Michigan, Mel played for the Michigan Wolverines football team.
After retiring from the NFL, Mel attended the University of California Hastings College of Law, where he earned a Juris Doctor. He was admitted to the State Bar of California in 2003.
How much does Mel make as The Golden Bachelor?
While Mel’s salary for The Golden Bachelor Season 2 hasn’t been confirmed, Season 19 Bachelorette Rachel Recchia revealed in an episode on the “Trading Secrets” podcast in September 2025 that every Bachelor and Bachelorette lead, aside from Season 8’s Emily Maynard, made around the same pay of $110,000 to $120,000. Rachel was the lead of The Bachelorette Season 19 alongside Gabby Windey. Both Rachel and Gabby were finalists on The Bachelor Season 26 with Clayton Echard.
“I was like, ‘If Gabby is up for this, it’s going to Gabby. I do not think there is a chance I’m getting this,’” Rachel said. “When they sent me the contract, they told me, they were like, ‘Well, this is the rate. We’ve only negotiated with one person, which was Emily Maynard, and she got the highest and we haven’t negotiated since. This is the contract.’”
She continued, “I just didn’t think they wanted me that bad. So I just signed it to sign it just because, why would I not take the opportunity? I just didn’t think it was mine to argue with.”
According to a past report by In Touch Weekly, Emily made $250,000 as the Bachelorette. The producers have completely changed the format this season in order to meet Emily’s demands,” a source told In Touch at the time.
In Touch also reported that Emily was specific about the type of men she wanted on her season. “She wanted only the best-looking, most mannered guys,” the source said. “She’s whittling it down to a handful of candidates who she will spend a lot more time with. If she doesn’t like a guy, he’s gone.”
Season 14 Bachelorette contestant and “Trading Secrets” host Jason Tartick also confirmed on his podcast in May 2021 that he and his castmates, Colton Underwood and Blake Horstmann, were all offered $100,000 to be the Season 23 Bachelor. $100,000 hasn’t always been the range, however. Season 13 Bachelorette contestant Dean Unglert claimed on the same podcast that he was approached to be the Season 22 Bachelor with a $75,000 contract.
Us Weekly also reported in 2011 that Season 7 Bachelorette Ashley Herbert made $30,000 for the role. The 2018 book, Bachelor Nation, also reported that Season 2 Bachelorette Meredith Philips made $10,000 as the lead. Though author Amy Kaufman also reported that it would be “incredibly rare for someone to make less than six figures” today.
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