Post by EagleGene on May 1, 2005 7:22:10 GMT -5
Owens' agent has backers on Eagles' defensive line
By Bob Brookover, Inquirer Staff Writer
Mention the name Drew Rosenhaus at the NovaCare Complex these days and you're likely to be received with a frown and a cold stare.
The NFL's superagent has the Eagles' front office locked in a high-stakes game of chicken with star wide receiver Terrell Owens, and there's no telling how this drama is going to proceed or end.
Owens, adored by Eagles fans in his first season with the team, has lost much support because of his desire to renegotiate the seven-year, $48.97 million deal he signed after being traded from the Baltimore Ravens in March 2004.
Read the numerous fan Web sites, and the majority of the blame for Owens' controversial decision is pinned on Rosenhaus, who once appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated and pronounced: "I am a ruthless warrior. I am a hit man. I will move in for the kill and use everything within my power to succeed for my clients."
Underneath those words was this caption: "The most hated man in pro football."
Not everyone in the league or even at the Eagles' practice facility for this weekend's minicamp considers Rosenhaus a ruthless scoundrel driven by ego and greed. A trio of Eagles defensive ends were more than willing to defend their agent after yesterday's indoor morning practice.
"He's a good guy who really works hard for his players," said Jerome McDougle, the Eagles' 2003 first-round draft pick, whose five-year, $8.5 million deal was negotiated by Rosenhaus. "Some agents are out for themselves, and they're not trying to do what's best for the player all the time. Drew is always looking out for the player.
"The people who hate him are the guys in the front office who don't want to pay the players. Drew fights for his players, and his players love him."
With last month's addition of Owens and offensive tackle Tra Thomas to his mushrooming stable of clients, Rosenhaus now represents five Eagles and close to 100 players around the league. McDougle is the only one of the five who hired Rosenhaus out of college; that was a natural fit because he played at the University of Miami, near the agent's home and office in South Beach.
Like Owens and Thomas, defensive ends Hugh Douglas and Jevon Kearse left other agents to join Rosenhaus.
"If I needed a brain surgeon, I'm not going to hire a first-year resident," Douglas said. "I'm going to get the best that I can get. I'm going to get the world-renowned brain surgeon.
"Everybody has a certain way of doing things, and he's definitely rubbed some people the wrong way. But I think if you look at his track record and everything he's done for people, that speaks for itself."
Douglas' decision to dump Jerome Stanley and replace him with Rosenhaus in 1997 proved beneficial to both him and the Eagles.
"I was in New York [with the Jets] and I really wasn't happy with the situation... as far as being in a 3-4 system," Douglas said. "I wanted to leave and the agent I had was like, 'This is what it is and I can't do anything about it.' "
That wasn't the answer Douglas was looking for. He said he contacted Rosenhaus, and the agent set the wheels in motion for the trade that brought the defensive end to the Eagles in 1998. Douglas has gone to three Pro Bowls with the Eagles and has become one of the most popular players in franchise history.
That was the beginning of the Eagles' fascinating dealings with Rosenhaus, and it wasn't the last time the relationship with the agent benefited the team. When the free-agency period opened in March 2004, Kearse made it clear to Rosenhaus that he wanted to join the Eagles. The agent made it happen fast.
Kearse said he hired Rosenhaus because his own agents - Leigh Steinberg, Jeff Moorad and David Dunn - were going through a much-publicized split that tore apart their business.
"I wanted somebody based in South Florida, because my family is based in South Florida," Kearse said. "I think with Drew, he always feels like he's doing what is best for his players."
Douglas, of course, was also involved in one of the Eagles' more unpleasant episodes with Rosenhaus when he left the team for Jacksonville as a free agent after the 2002 season. Douglas' departure to the Jaguars turned into a disaster for the player, but he still is adamant that he had to take the money Jacksonville offered.
"A lot of stories have been told about the whole situation," Douglas said.
"From what I know," he said, the money offered by the Eagles "wasn't the same. You have different stories, but it's all water under the bridge and you can't cry over it. I trust Drew."
So do McDougle and Kearse, and now Owens and Thomas.
"Let's not pretend that everybody isn't in this business to make money," Douglas added.
Money, of course, is what Owens' boycott of this Eagles minicamp is all about. Rosenhaus is trying to get him a better deal.
"It's definitely going to be interesting," Douglas said.
"The Eagles have taken a stance, and they've done it a certain way through the years and [Rosenhaus] has done it a certain way through the years. I'm pretty sure, like any other lawyer, Drew has asked Terrell, 'How far are you willing to go?' T.O. is a smart man. He's not going into this blind. You have to understand the repercussions of what might happen. Like everybody else, I'm just waiting to see."
Contact staff writer Bob Brookover at 215-854-2577 or bbrookover@phillynews.com.
Updated on Sunday, May 1, 2005 3:53 am EDT
By Bob Brookover, Inquirer Staff Writer
Mention the name Drew Rosenhaus at the NovaCare Complex these days and you're likely to be received with a frown and a cold stare.
The NFL's superagent has the Eagles' front office locked in a high-stakes game of chicken with star wide receiver Terrell Owens, and there's no telling how this drama is going to proceed or end.
Owens, adored by Eagles fans in his first season with the team, has lost much support because of his desire to renegotiate the seven-year, $48.97 million deal he signed after being traded from the Baltimore Ravens in March 2004.
Read the numerous fan Web sites, and the majority of the blame for Owens' controversial decision is pinned on Rosenhaus, who once appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated and pronounced: "I am a ruthless warrior. I am a hit man. I will move in for the kill and use everything within my power to succeed for my clients."
Underneath those words was this caption: "The most hated man in pro football."
Not everyone in the league or even at the Eagles' practice facility for this weekend's minicamp considers Rosenhaus a ruthless scoundrel driven by ego and greed. A trio of Eagles defensive ends were more than willing to defend their agent after yesterday's indoor morning practice.
"He's a good guy who really works hard for his players," said Jerome McDougle, the Eagles' 2003 first-round draft pick, whose five-year, $8.5 million deal was negotiated by Rosenhaus. "Some agents are out for themselves, and they're not trying to do what's best for the player all the time. Drew is always looking out for the player.
"The people who hate him are the guys in the front office who don't want to pay the players. Drew fights for his players, and his players love him."
With last month's addition of Owens and offensive tackle Tra Thomas to his mushrooming stable of clients, Rosenhaus now represents five Eagles and close to 100 players around the league. McDougle is the only one of the five who hired Rosenhaus out of college; that was a natural fit because he played at the University of Miami, near the agent's home and office in South Beach.
Like Owens and Thomas, defensive ends Hugh Douglas and Jevon Kearse left other agents to join Rosenhaus.
"If I needed a brain surgeon, I'm not going to hire a first-year resident," Douglas said. "I'm going to get the best that I can get. I'm going to get the world-renowned brain surgeon.
"Everybody has a certain way of doing things, and he's definitely rubbed some people the wrong way. But I think if you look at his track record and everything he's done for people, that speaks for itself."
Douglas' decision to dump Jerome Stanley and replace him with Rosenhaus in 1997 proved beneficial to both him and the Eagles.
"I was in New York [with the Jets] and I really wasn't happy with the situation... as far as being in a 3-4 system," Douglas said. "I wanted to leave and the agent I had was like, 'This is what it is and I can't do anything about it.' "
That wasn't the answer Douglas was looking for. He said he contacted Rosenhaus, and the agent set the wheels in motion for the trade that brought the defensive end to the Eagles in 1998. Douglas has gone to three Pro Bowls with the Eagles and has become one of the most popular players in franchise history.
That was the beginning of the Eagles' fascinating dealings with Rosenhaus, and it wasn't the last time the relationship with the agent benefited the team. When the free-agency period opened in March 2004, Kearse made it clear to Rosenhaus that he wanted to join the Eagles. The agent made it happen fast.
Kearse said he hired Rosenhaus because his own agents - Leigh Steinberg, Jeff Moorad and David Dunn - were going through a much-publicized split that tore apart their business.
"I wanted somebody based in South Florida, because my family is based in South Florida," Kearse said. "I think with Drew, he always feels like he's doing what is best for his players."
Douglas, of course, was also involved in one of the Eagles' more unpleasant episodes with Rosenhaus when he left the team for Jacksonville as a free agent after the 2002 season. Douglas' departure to the Jaguars turned into a disaster for the player, but he still is adamant that he had to take the money Jacksonville offered.
"A lot of stories have been told about the whole situation," Douglas said.
"From what I know," he said, the money offered by the Eagles "wasn't the same. You have different stories, but it's all water under the bridge and you can't cry over it. I trust Drew."
So do McDougle and Kearse, and now Owens and Thomas.
"Let's not pretend that everybody isn't in this business to make money," Douglas added.
Money, of course, is what Owens' boycott of this Eagles minicamp is all about. Rosenhaus is trying to get him a better deal.
"It's definitely going to be interesting," Douglas said.
"The Eagles have taken a stance, and they've done it a certain way through the years and [Rosenhaus] has done it a certain way through the years. I'm pretty sure, like any other lawyer, Drew has asked Terrell, 'How far are you willing to go?' T.O. is a smart man. He's not going into this blind. You have to understand the repercussions of what might happen. Like everybody else, I'm just waiting to see."
Contact staff writer Bob Brookover at 215-854-2577 or bbrookover@phillynews.com.
Updated on Sunday, May 1, 2005 3:53 am EDT