Where Does The Duty End?

There are quite a few things that I would like to change about the sports agent industry. One of them includes a change of trend in the way that agents generally treat their retired clients. On April 20, 2007, I wrote a post titled, Take The Vow, which may sound a little preachy, but definitely exposes my true feelings on the subject. Here's the main gist of it: It is too well known that many players bank on their abilities on the field to make money and do not prepare themselves for life after football. It is our job as agents, to change this trend. Promise that you will never give up on your clients, even the ones who turn out to be busts by the media's standards. Don't think the situation is bad? Check out Spencer Folau. He retired from playing professional football at 32-years-old and had no clue how to file for benefits/disability or where to find a lawyer or financial planner. Where was his agent? Nowhere to be found and unreachable [Harris Sells Doughnuts in League of Former Stars]. Franco Harris is an exception. He was able to create a successful bakery after retirement from the NFL, but for every Harris, there are a few Folaus. However, instead of remaining ignorant and allowing his fellow colleagues to enter life after football unaware of the proper steps to take, Folau and former Baltimore Ravens teammate Mike Flynn created Alumni Management Group (AMG), which is a company that assists retired football players. Athletes should continue to be proactive in shaping a successful post-playing career. At the same time, agents should not drop clients to the curb once they no longer provide services on the field of play. If an athlete wishes to retain his agent for the long haul, the agent should be receptive to helping that client in future ventures. I doubt someone like Folau would have had an issue with compensating his agent in return for helpful advice.