He has literally been using “some guy” as an agent.
At this point the only person that can negotiate for him is himself.
No wonder he is sitting in limbo.
Jackson has denied that that person did anything for him regarding a contract.
https://www.si.com/.amp/extra-mustard/2023/03/23/lamar-jackson-responds-nfl-memo-regarding-non-certified-rep-ken-francis
Either way, Jackson made a big mistake by not employing a knowledgeable and certified NFL agent. There are many columns discussing how this cost Jackson in salary up to this point well in excess of what he would have paid an agent. That does not even include how things have played out since his rookie contract expired and the Ravens used the non-exclusive franchise tag on him.
Way too complicated even for a run of the mill attorney.
There is a reason this is a specialized industry.
I think Jackson took the Clark Howard approach of doing it himself to save paying an agent a commission.
Although I think this headline is somewhat misleading in that Richard Sherman did not state that it is the fault of Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen for Lamar Jackson’s current stalemate, Sherman did say that Mahomes and Allen did not get fully guaranteed contracts, which helped the NFL owners in not making that a precedent. That much is true.
The flip side is that the only reason DeShaun Watson got a guaranteed contract with the Cleveland Browns is because that organization is a clown show and that was the only way they could get Watson to consider signing with them. No other organization offered Watson a fully guaranteed contract.
Along the similar lines, I wish the Washington Commanders would offer Jackson a fully guaranteed contract similar to what Watson signed. Jackson would then have the choice of signing that contract, knowing the Raven might not match it and he might get stuck with playing for another clown-show franchise. I wonder how attractive that would be to Jackson.
I wonder if he regrets not having an agent.
So the NFL APPROVED Agents are a closed Fraternity.
Will I be prevented from taking my Brother in law with me to negotiate a car deal?
This has the stink of TicketMaster and Taylor Swift Tickets!
When my dad was alive, I took him with me to the car dealers. Because I suck at negotiating and I admit it. My dad thrived on it. But when it comes to the salary caps and guaranteed money and all the other things, I don’t think an individual can navigate something that complex if they are doing it as a part time job. Yes, he saved money…in the past…by not having an agent.
Correction. NFLPA certified agents.
I read an article that made the case that Jackson didn’t even save money in the past. It said that, one one hand, yes the rookie wage scale in the CBA pretty locks-in the amount for a first contract and thus limits what an agent can negotiate. At the same time, an agent is plugged into teams and can make a case to owners and GMs about how great his player is and thus get a better draft position, which translates into a higher first contract. Jackson did not have an agent and was not drafted until very late in the first round. Perhaps, had he had an agent advocating for him, he would have been drafted higher and gotten a higher contract that more than would have made up for what he would have paid an agent.
It is actually the Players Union that approves them
So… this still a Closed Fraternity!!!
The Players Union could put out an Approved or Recommended List but requiring adherence is a problem if not restraint of trade.
Ummm… by their own choice.
The Players Union is a private entity.
They get to decide who is able to represent them.
Heaven forbid players and owners try to win a Superbowl!!
Mahomes is a pretty sharp cookie. He certainly isn’t hurting with his NFL salary, but he also has income as part owner of the Royals and owner of a womens soccer team, plus he’s a franchisee for Whataburger here (30 of them eventually). And then there are his endorsement deals. So he’s not hurting for income AND he’s helping his team
In fairness, I don’t think that guaranteeing a contract in itself will handicap a team from winning a Super Bowl. The team can still restructure the contract to play games with the salary cap. I just read that the Browns are looking to restructure Watson’s contract.
As we have discussed before, the big issue is the amount of salary cap space the contract eats up.
Here is a good column on the subject.
Jackson would have benefitted from an agent telling him where he stood in the market, as opposed to where he thought he stood.
Best line;
“You tamper,” one agent said. “You meet with as many teams as you can and you tamper like a motherf***er."
I also like how the agents say there really is no collusion among owners.
Another good column:
https://www.si.com/nfl/2023/03/30/lamar-jackson-contract-negotiations-need-agents
The end of the column is really good.
And if an agent had come to Jackson after all this time and said all he could drum up for a 26-year-old former league MVP was a single non-exclusive franchise tag, then I would have told Jackson to fire that agent and replace him with a good one.
