Packers 2017 Draft: One-on-one with sports agent Leigh Steinberg
Q&A with sports agent Leigh Steinberg
Q: In general, can you explain what goes into identifying what types of athletes you personally look for when you’re examining some players on the verge of becoming draft-eligible? What are you looking for not only as far as physical ability, but also in terms of character?
A: Well, it all starts with character. We have a practice that suggests to athletes that they go back to the high school community and set up a scholarship fund or work with a church or a boys-and-girls club and put down roots. Then, go back to the collegiate campus and set up some sort of scholarship fund or redo the weight room to bond with those alums. And then, at the professional level, set up a charitable foundation that enlists the leading political figures, economic figures and community leaders behind some cause. So, for example, Warrick Dunn, who’s retired…he put up the 161st single mother and her family in the first home that they’ll ever own and making a down payment for them to move into a furnished house. So, it’s athletes changing lives. You look for the quality of character. Someone who’s going to be ambitious when it comes to their second career. Somebody who’s going to have exemplary work habits and the rest of it. And, in terms of athletic skills, the key is to find an athlete who in adversity…in a critical situation…is able to elevate his level of play. So, if the team’s not going well, maybe the running back fumbles, but now we’re in the fourth quarter. Does that athlete have the ability to adopt a quiet mind to compartmentalize and figure out and focus on the moment to elevate his level of play? So, you’re looking for an athlete that can bring it in critical situations. So, I look at the family structure and that the athlete is someone who’s going to leave a legacy and make a difference in the world and slowly transition to his second career. So, those are the qualities that you look for in the recruiting process because at the running back position, I’ve done Edgerrin James, Thurman Thomas, Ricky Williams and a series of other very good backs. Once a running back looked at me when I presented that to him and he said, I have my own charity…and he ran the fastest 40-yard dash I’ve ever seen. So, you’re going to be able to tell.
Q: I like how you brought up the fact that you want to see how these players react to adversity. You want to see them when their team goes through a 4 or 5-game losing streak and how they are going to affected by fans that are down on them. There are some players that just check out mentally during a losing season and are ready to pack it up. The ones that stand out are the ones that continually put up an all-out effort and give their best even if their team is 3-13.
A: It’s the ability to compartmentalize and to just tune out negative messages and to focus on the task at hand…and it’s not always easy.
Q: How does representing a quarterback, and you’ve worked with a ton of them, differ from repping players at the running back, wide receiver or even the linebacker position for instance?
A: The league has become quarterback-centric. The team will find it difficult to get to a Super Bowl and through the playoffs without a franchise quarterback. Someone they can build around for 10-12 years and someone they can win because of rather than with. Someone who, again, in a moment of crisis can elevate their level of play. So, that position has become exalted in terms of value in the league. It’s the essential building block in a team game and it’s still a team game, but having that type of franchise quarterback is the essential building block for a team. And so, the scouting process is even more intense than it is for other positions. Personality, character, leadership and a whole series of qualities are looked at in addition to the athletic skills. And there’s no such thing as a backup quarterback. The quarterback who’s standing and holding the clipboard can become the most critical factor in injury or at any moment. The point is, it’s important to have not only a great starting quarterback, but to make sure there’s someone to substitute for him. So, it’s a more complex scouting process, and so, for example, we have Patrick Mahomes this year and there are 19 teams he’s either visited with on campus or at their facility because the need at quarterback is so great.
Q: So, when you sit down with a player like Aaron Jones—a running back—his life span as a player is obviously not going to be that of your average quarterback. What type of counsel or advice is someone like Aaron getting on his career options or life after football in general?
A: So, by laying down the roots at the high school, college and professional levels. He’s networking and making friendships with people in all levels of his life that might help him in his second career. On that board for his charity are business contacts, political contacts. The alumni from his school may also be immensely helpful in mentoring him in his second career. We’re also going to try to use the offseasons to try and have him explore what he might do in his second career, so it might be business. Three of the athletes, former players that I have, are minority owners of actual NFL teams. A number of them are stars in business. So, Warrick Dunn, who we just mentioned, is a minority owner of the Falcons. So, for this generation, they can be owners, they can go into media, where Desmond Howard does the hosting on College Gameday or Troy Aikman or Steve Young or Daryl Johnston. You’re using those offseasons to try to give them experiences that will help them ease their way into s second career. The focus from the beginning is if I were to become injured or only played a few years or whenever my career ends, what other skills and talents do you have as a human being?
Q: How has the league changed over the past 20-25 years? What are some of the things players should be aware of now that probably didn’t even exist in the recent past?
A: Well, first of all, the whole advent of social media. You go back 20 years and the internet really existed in a very different form. So, today the internet and social media offers an opportunity for athletes to brand themselves; it also offers them an opportunity to get into constant controversy and create problems. So, athletes have to be very careful to how they use social media and understand how to do it. On the one hand, it brands because it elevates an athlete’s profile; on the other hand it creates danger because everything that an athlete says or writes is scrutinized. The second thing is, while the amount of money has exploded in all professional sports, especially football. The structure is different. So, now we have the rookie salary cap that control’s a rookie’s compensation for four…or for a first-rounder…five years. The money has been transferred to proven, productive starters and away from massive rookie bonuses and free agency comes after four years. But for a first-rounder, the team has the option to keep them for five years, so that’s a change. Pro football has moved from being a competitive sport to our national pastime, so that 45 million people play fantasy football and ratings outdo those of virtually every other form of entertainment. It’s the most popular television show. So, it’s now become a national obsession. You have the growth of national stadiums with luxury boxes, premium seating, jumbo scoreboards, naming rights. You have the growth of memorabilia and content over every revenue stream. The sport has become dominant and that gives a chance for players to become household names if they perform dramatically and have pleasing personalities.
Q: I just wrapped up my interview with Aaron Jones. He sounds like a very upbeat guy with an engaging personality. What can you tell me him?
A: He’s all that and one of the most grounded [individuals] from a strong extended family with an amazing disposition. When Patrick Mahomes was having his pro scouting day in Lubbock, Aaron drove down from El Paso to give him support. So, he’s one of the most thoughtful, team-oriented people you could ever imagine and he’s got a spark in his game where he could just break it pretty much at any time. Because it’s Texas El Paso, there’s a tendency to overlook the fact that talent comes from everywhere. He can be a very impactful back.
Q: Well, as you know, the Packers will be looking to add one or more running backs in the draft and probably signing one or two more as undrafted free agents. What can you tell us about another of your clients Jamaal Williams? We know he’s big, strong and can pass block, but what can you add about Jamaal from a character standpoint?
A: He’s someone who ended up becoming a big hero within the BYU community. He sat out a year because of some violations that are ordinary student behavior in any other school except for BYU (see BYU honor code). But instead of transferring, he came back, stuck it out, showed character, graduated and became a real favorite among BYU fans. He would walk around the field prior to games shaking hands with the kids, performing little magic tricks and engaging himself with fans in a really personal way that made him beloved. He’s sort of an icon within the BYU and extended BYU community. He’s got a vibrant personality. He’s someone who’s got a big personality, as well as athletic skills and is very engaging.
Q: You’ve worked with so many players over a long period of time that I’m sure you consider a lot of them like family. What’s been the proudest moment as far as witnessing a client accomplishing a great feat either on the field or even once their playing careers were over?
A: First of all, it’s always sitting at a banquet and watching someone like Warren Moon recognize hundreds of kids who get up because they’ve gone to colleges on his scholarships. It’s watching someone like Warrick Dunn change lives. In terms of probably the proudest moment, it was the ability to introduce Warren Moon at the Hall of Fame
as his presenter and the fact that he played 23 years and made it to that point. In terms of the on-the-field, it was probably the first time Troy Aikman won the Super Bowl and watching his life change or Steve Young, who had been forever in the shadow of Joe Montana going down to Miami against the Chargers in the Super Bowl and throwing 6 touchdowns and then running off the field and hugging me and saying, The monkey’s off my back. The monkey’s off my back. It was last season going to Buffalo and watching Bruce Smith, the all-time sack leader get his jersey retired and watch the whole stadium erupt in love for him. It’s seeing impactful moments like that.