Navigating the NFL Draft's Highs and Lows With an Agent

[soulman]

Now that the draft is over I though you all might find this an interesting read.  It's from a 2014 SI article that follow the work of one players rep agency through drafting of their top 1st round pick client through the weekend as other players they rep are taken in the ensuing rounds all the way to working to find homes for their UDFA guys.  These guys put a lot of time and effort into earning their 3% slice of their players contracts.

It's a long read but a good one especially at the end where they're fielding calls from teams trying to recruit UDFAs they don't intend to draft while at the same time telling them they'll draft them next.....unless they don't.  I felt it was too long to copy and paste the entire article so I posted just a few paragraphs to give you all and brief idea of the thrust of it then provided a link to the entire article for those who would like to read all of it.

 

AGENTS ARE PEOPLE TOO ...

From guiding the top quarterback taken to finding homes for the unchosen, from Central Park to Newport Beach, the most dedicated advocates for next season's rookies (next to their moms) had a busy weekend. SI was there.

 

By Austin Murphy

 

LINK: /https://www.si.com/vault/2014/05/19/106465065/agents-are-people-too-

SITTING IN the green room backstage at Radio City Music Hall last Thursday night, Rob Bortles suffered a moment of confusion. The NFL draft had just gotten under way, yet there was his eldest son, Blake, the gunslinging junior quarterback from Central Florida, a cellphone pressed to his ear. True, the 22-year-old couldn't realistically expect to be selected for another hour or so—he had spent the previous fortnight plummeting down mock draft boards. Still, his old man considered it bad form to be yukking it up with a buddy, especially with so many cameras around.

"Who's Blake talking to?" Rob inquired. "He needs to get off the phone!"

It was quickly explained that the caller was in fact Blake's future employer, the Jaguars, who had not moved the 6'5" 232-pounder down on their draft board. In fact, they had earmarked him months earlier as their QB of the future and then engaged in a campaign of misdirection and skullduggery to camouflage their ardor. Jacksonville invited multiple passers to its facility in the weeks leading up to the draft, feigning interest in all but one of them. GM Dave Caldwell went so far as to fudge the big board at his team's headquarters, moving Bortles down to a slot where he wouldn't attract attention. Caldwell didn't even tell his wife, Joelle, of the team's intentions for the No. 3 pick until just before the draft.

Less surprised than many by Jacksonville's derring-do was Ryan Tollner, a pensive, handsome ex--Cal quarterback who shares the responsibility of being Bortles's agent. Tollner, 38, had a strong hunch that reports of his client's slide had been greatly exaggerated. Along with his cousin Bruce Tollner, 49, Ryan is a partner at Rep1 Sports, an up-and-coming agency that's gone through a handful of names and configurations since Bruce founded it in 1992. By allowing SI to tag along during the three days of the draft, the Tollners provided a front-row-seat view of the agency's finest hour.

To continue use this link..........https://www.si.com/vault/2014/05/19/106465065/agents-are-people-too-

[Superman(DH23)]

Rep1 is also Tru's agency.  And Goff.  

[soulman]

For those who did take the time to read it would you let me know if this kind of supplemental stuff interests you so I'll know if it's worth it to keep scouting for stuff like this to post.  Thanks!