Why do football players have agents?

[A_C_Slater]

Can't they just speak for themselves and say "I'm a number one draft pick and I won't play for you unless you pay me X amount of dollars over X amount of years"

Why exactly do the agents do?

They post here. (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=sportevents)

[Claunchy]

Sports forum, yadda yadda yadda...

A sports contract is a business negotiation for millions of dollars. In any other similar circumstance you wouldn't find it strange to hire a professional to handle all the minutiae. Why does it seem strange for you in this case?

[smb394]

There's often a reason football players (to stereotype) take "rocks for jocks" or "underwater basket weaving"...

[A_C_Slater]

What minutiae?

Players should know what a resonable salary is for their place in the draft by just looking up the salaries payed at their corresponding pick from last years draft.

These guy's have gone to college.

Is the bureaucracy of getting a contract so insane that they're willing to pay some guy $1,000,000 to handle it for them?

[SammyKid11]

Have you ever taken a contract law class? If so, did you understand it? I'm willing to bet the answer to at least one of these questions is "no." If you had fully digested a contract law class, you would understand that when dealing with millions of dollars and hundreds of pages of obligations, clauses, cancellation contingencies, monetary deferments, etc. -- you WANT a professional handling it. Negotiation is an artform, and there is a LOT more to it than saying, "here's how much money I want." No player in the National Football League can do as good a job negotiating their own contract as a professional can. Many are too dumb to READ their own contracts, much less say fully digest the legal ramifications and then advantageously negotiate said terms on their own behalf. They NEED agents. To think otherwise is to be seriously naive.

[bones]

Deals are structured to fit within the salary cap. Not to mention incentive-based bonuses, clauses that potentially void the contract for either side, and many other things.

It's not just an old guy handing out checks for $2 million as the players report to camp.

[Tron]

[ QUOTE ]
"underwater basket weaving"

[/ QUOTE ]

Have you ever woven a basket underwater? I doubt it, or else you'd show some [censored] respect.

[smb394]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"underwater basket weaving"

[/ QUOTE ]

Have you ever woven a basket underwater? I doubt it, or else you'd show some [censored] respect.

[/ QUOTE ]

My sarcasm detector might be off, but this (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underwater_basket_weaving) is what I was referring to.

[Claunchy]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"underwater basket weaving"

[/ QUOTE ]

Have you ever woven a basket underwater? I doubt it, or else you'd show some [censored] respect.

[/ QUOTE ]

My sarcasm detector might be off, but this (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underwater_basket_weaving) is what I was referring to.

[/ QUOTE ]
I think your sarcasm detector was surgically removed.

[smb394]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"underwater basket weaving"

[/ QUOTE ]

Have you ever woven a basket underwater? I doubt it, or else you'd show some [censored] respect.

[/ QUOTE ]

My sarcasm detector might be off, but this (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underwater_basket_weaving) is what I was referring to.

[/ QUOTE ]
I think your sarcasm detector was surgically removed.

[/ QUOTE ]

Just needs new batteries. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[morello]

A better question might be "Why do NBA rookies have contracts", because there is a fairly rigid rookie pay scale based upon draft slot. The NFL has a lot of maneuvreability in terms of clauses, length of contract, dollar amount, etc.