Twitter: Stephen’s take on negotiations with agents

[DandyTom64]

Would anybody really trust somebody named Rocky to handle your business? Guess there is a sucker born every minute.

 

[Blackspider214]

I mean, duh. Agents have no reason to care about team success while players do. No agent ever built a legacy on how many super bowls their clients won.

Why should a player care about the team in reality? They play a game they enjoy but you are naive if you think is not the #1 motivator for every player. Super Bowls don't feed your families, does it? Nope. The only loyalty is dollars. A player wants what is owed to him based on his worth and value. He doesn't worry about his teammates. And teammates don't worry about him.

 

[glimmerman]

The problem for Zeke is that he really isn't that marketable. He's one strike away from a lifetime ban from the league. He's shown himself to be a knuckle headed douchebag in every single off-season and he obviously has serious maturity issues. His agent knows damned well that the 10%-20% that he COULD make on any endorsement deals with Zeke isn't worth anywhere near what it would be with any other player in his dugout.

Dak has his face splattered all over the planet, right now. Zeke? You don't think there's a reason for that. It's exactly why Zeke's agent is angling for every single contract dollar that he can negotiate because the well is pretty dry after that. What he's failing to realize is that keeping Zeke on a team that has a chance to actually win a Super Bowl is the best chance he'll EVER have to get some endorsement %.

I'll be honest, at this point, I'm willing to let Zeke sit and trade him at the first opportunity of an equitable deal (and this is coming from a fan that, to this point, has absolutely LOVED Ezekiel Elliott). I'd trade his rights to the most bottom of the barrel franchise that I could possibly send him to (hopefully in a state with ridiculous state taxes) and let the idiot stew, for the rest of his career, about what could have been.

Step 1 for him is to fire his agent and get back to the team. Go in and talk to JJ and SJ with a new agent that will work on getting him getting in a good light with the public. They can be very forgiving and there is avenues for endorsement. I assumed he would have made millions off the feed me thing. So many in the public thought he was screwed over the DV case. But before he could get through it he had 2 other problems. Maybe his agent is a good one and Elliot is just so immature that nothing more can he done. His father said something about being afraid he couldn’t handle it or wasn’t ready.

 

[Blackspider214]

Good for him. You can't have 5 players taking up 45% of the cap.

What does that have to Zeke and his agent, though? They want what is owed to them. It's not Zeke's fault the contracts given out before he got his. Zeke wants what he thinks he is owed. He doesn't want less money because of past decisions.

You also shouldn't have so much money and resources tied into 3 players on the OL but hey, we stupidly did. Again, Zeke has nothing to do with that. He wants his money and good for him.

 

[Alexander]

Anyone in the know on how much agents get when their client signs say a 80 mil contract?
It might pay to fire the agent and negotiate your own deal and save what you would pay the agent.

I have always believed that a lot of this has to do with the player themselves.

We already should know what agents are interested in. Yes, there is the Rod Tidwell "show me the money" thing and the romance of Jerry MacGuire, but that is a very small part of the overall picture.

A lot of these players lack the intellect to understand money and how to handle it. Most have come from backgrounds where money's value begins and ends with the dollar sign, not how it is managed.

Look at idiots like Antonio Brown. He got nice contracts from Drew Rosenhaus. But he blew vast amounts of money on hot air balloons to take him to camp and even customized mats for the ground when he stepped off of it.

A few million dollars here or there matter far more to the agent than the player, if they have half a brain. And if the player is smart, he might realize that.

 

[atlantacowboy]

Zeke's agent is unwittingly taking an approach that isn't in Zeke's best interest. Both he and Zeke aren't acting in the best interest of the team nor themselves, in the final analysis. Both parties in negotiations need to be responsible enough to leave room for other teammates and the team, itself, to prosper. Failing to do so isn't acting in good faith. Here's hoping Zeke and his agent come to terms with the necessity to cooperate and settle things to the best advantage of all concerned (the team, its players and Zeke himself.)

Zeke might have the dumbest agent in all of football.

 

[atlantacowboy]

What does that have to Zeke and his agent, though? They want what is owed to them. It's not Zeke's fault the contracts given out before he got his. Zeke wants what he thinks he is owed. He doesn't want less money because of past decisions.

You also shouldn't have so much money and resources tied into 3 players on the OL but hey, we stupidly did. Again, Zeke has nothing to do with that. He wants his money and good for him.

Zeke is under contract and he is "owed" nothing. He played his hold out card a year early and it is not going to help him. And FYI, him getting his money isn't going to help you or the Dallas Cowboys.

 

[Vanilla2]

Agree to a point, but there are definitely players that just don't care about anything but getting the most money they can.

At some point it is their job

 

[Vanilla2]

What is the leagues avg yearly revenue?

 

[skinsscalper]

Step 1 for him is to fire his agent and get back to the team. Go in and talk to JJ and SJ with a new agent that will work on getting him getting in a good light with the public. They can be very forgiving and there is avenues for endorsement. I assumed he would have made millions off the feed me thing. So many in the public thought he was screwed over the DV case. But before he could get through it he had 2 other problems. Maybe his agent is a good one and Elliot is just so immature that nothing more can he done. His father said something about being afraid he couldn’t handle it or wasn’t ready.

And, as it turns out, his father was right. Ezekiel Elliot had the opportunity of a lifetime when he was bent over the barrel by the league (and regardless of what anyone thinks of him, now, that's exactly what happened). He had the chance to be "the exception" by doing nothing but being exceptional off the field. Two off-seasons in a row he's blown it.

There's a poster on another Cowboys forum that goes to quite a few Cowboys functions (signings, camps, etc.) This person talks to a lot of people that are up close and personal with the Cowboys organization. They made a comment in a post last week that basically read "Not one person who has had personal contact with Ezekiel Elliot (outside of those actually in the organization) who have met Elliott has had a single nice thing to say about him". I hated reading that but I'm finding myself more and more inclined to believe it (fair or not).

There's just something off about that kid. No one knows that guy better than his dad. He nailed it, IMHO.

 

[conner01]

SJ is right. Nice messaging to Zeke/ Dak/ Amari.

There is only so much Cowboy pie to be had. Don't be last in line.

Messaging is on point.

Agents job is to represent their client
Teams job to manage their team
Reality is a player can chase every cent they can get or sign for a few bucks less and be a part of a complete team

 

[xwalker]

Convicted?

He has conviction.

Conviction: Firmly held opinion or belief.

 

[JoeKing]

Convicted?

In this instance, it means "committed to your thoughts".

 

[DallasDW00ds0n]

Hes speaking the truth but it is true. Its the agents job to get the most for their clients at the end of the day regardless.

 

[CapnB]

Not just agents saying its not their job to worry about the cap. Dak said the same thing when all this contract talk came up. I dont blame him for wanting all he can get. i would as well.

 

[xwalker]

Agents job is to represent their client
Teams job to manage their team
Reality is a player can chase every cent they can get or sign for a few bucks less and be a part of a complete team

The issue is that the agents just want the most money even if the player would be happier taking less to play where they want to play.

The agents are often very deceptive to their own clients.

If you buy a house you'll work with a buyers agent. They present themselves as working for you but in reality they want you to buy as soon as possible and spend as much as possible.

 

[yimyammer]

They came out swinging today.



full image:

I agree

 

[conner01]

The issue is that the agents just want the most money even if the player would be happier taking less to play where they want to play.

The agents are often very deceptive to their own clients.

If you buy a house you'll work with a buyers agent. They present themselves as working for you but in reality they want you to buy as soon as possible and spend as much as possible.

Agents in many cases want to look like they got the most and the player ends up getting less because so much fluff is in their to make the agents look good
Agents can be slime balls
I worked in the Austin industry in Houston for many years and paid kickbacks to agents to get them to bring their players who are already paying them, to me
In the end the player paid the kickback but that’s a prime example of an agent looking out for himself, not his client

 

[cowboyblue22]

all of this is going to take a toll on the team this is mess created by Elliot and the joneses

 

[atlantacowboy]

Stephen is 100% correct. It becomes an ego thing with these agents. Zeke's agent staked his reputation and future as an agent to getting Zeke a new contract 2 years early and one that would make NFL history. Thats a pretty big ledge his reputation dangles on. He can't come away empty handed.

But, he's a moron and its clear his ploy isn't going to work. IMO, Zeke firing him is the only way out for all parties involved.