Late last night, Neil Stratton of InsideTheLeague.com broke a story that certainly kept me awake for a while.  The headline alone, which reads, “A super-agency goes supernova and in its place arises an even bigger agency,” made me anxious to click on the link and consume Stratton’s content.  I was not disappointed with the result.

Stratton wrote that multiple sources confirmed Jimmy Sexton’s departure from SportsTrust Advisors, and that he will be joining Creative Artists Agency (CAA).  CAA Football is currently run by agents Tom Condon and Ben Dogra.  Former defensive end Trace Armstrong represents a variety of coaches, including Urban Meyer.  Sexton represents both players and coaches.  He will be able to improve an already extremely strong CAA Football division.

If InsideTheLeague’s report is accurate, that means SportsTrust Advisors was a very short-lived experiment.  It was the brainchild of Sexton and Pat Dye, Jr., who merged their two respective companies, Athletic Resource Management (ARM) and ProFiles Sports, Inc.  Combined, the two entities represented a total of more than 40 coaches and 100 football players.  In the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft, SportsTrust Advisors had three clients selected: Julio Jones (#6 overall to the Atlanta Falcons), Christian Ponder (#12 overall to the Minnesota Vikings), and Cameron Heyward (#31 overall to the Pittsburgh Steelers).

Things to watch:

• How this affects CAA’s ability to recruit players (they were already very strong at it).
• Whether Tom Condon and Ben Dogra both continue their employment at CAA.
• Which SportsTrust clients leave with Jimmy Sexton and which of them stick with Pat Dye, Jr.
• How potential clients will react to the change.

Report: Jimmy Sexton Leaves SportsTrust Advisors To Join CAA from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

I know a lot of agents who love to boast about the fact that they rarely, if ever, get any sleep.  In fact, my friend Mook Williams of National Sports Management made his Facebook profile name, Mook NoSleepneeded Williams.

Judy Battista of the New York Times recently wrote an article titled, Sleep? For N.F.L. Agents, the Action Is Nonstop.  In that article, Battista mentioned David Canter, who can operate on 45 minutes of sleep (and is being talked about by many in the business after negotiating a whopper of a deal for client Eric Weddle), the CAA Football duo of Tom Condon and Ben Dogra, who have the daunting task of representing 5 first rounders in addition to Antonio Cromartie, Peyton Manning, and Nnamdi Asomugha (imagine how much time they spent on Asomugha alone!), and Joel Segal of Lagardere Unlimited, who summed up last week with the line, “Literally, no sleep!”

For more reading on the hectic weeks of various agents:

• Rick Reilly sat on Peter Schaffer’s stool for an entire day [NFL back in business].  Check out the blurb from 1:41 p.m.  4:03 p.m. blurb = Swedish hookers?  I have my guess of the agent.  I’ll keep it to myself.
• Andrew Astleford tracked down Harold Lewis’ every move at his agency’s offices in a mansion [A day in the life of an NFL agent].
• And a story we linked to in last week’s Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up, GQ’s 72-hour binge with David Canter [An Insider's Look at the NFL Free Agent Frenzy].

NFL Agents Have Been Getting Very Little Sleep from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

1. Carolina (2-14) - QB Cam Newton ~ Auburn - Agent: Bus Cook, Tony Paige, Chitta Mallik (B.C. Sports/Perennial Sports)

2. Denver (4-12) - LB Von Miller ~ Texas A&M - Agent: Athletes First

3. Buffalo (4-12) - DT Marcell Dareus ~ Alabama - Agent: Todd France

4. Cincinnati (4-12) - WR A.J. Green ~ Georgia - Agent: Creative Artists Agency

5. Arizona (5-11) - CB Patrick Peterson ~ LSU – Agent: Patrick Lawlor (Galaxy Sports)

6. Atlanta (13-3) [via trade with Cleveland] - WR Julio Jones ~ Alabama - Agent: SportsTrust Advisors

7. San Francisco (6-10) - DE/OLB Aldon Smith ~ Missouri – Agent: Creative Artists Agency

8. Tennessee (6-10) - QB Jake Locker ~ Washington - Agent: Athletes First

9. Dallas (6-10) - OT Tyron Smith ~ USC - Agent: Lock, Metz, and Malinovic

10. Jacksonville (8-8) [via trade with Washington] - QB Blaine Gabbert ~ Missouri - Agent: Creative Artists Agency

11. Houston (6-10) - DE J.J. Watt ~ Wisconsin - Agent: Creative Artists Agency

12. Minnesota (6-10) - QB Christian Ponder ~ Florida State – Agent: SportsTrust Advisors

13. Detroit (6-10) - DT Nick Fairley ~ Auburn - Agent: Brian Overstreet (E. Overstreet Sports Management)

14. St. Louis (7-9) - DE Robert Quinn ~ North Carolina - Agent: Carl Carey (Champion Pro Consulting)

15. Miami (7-9) - OG/C Mike Pouncey ~ Florida - Agent: Lagardere Unlimited

16. Washington (6-10) - DE Ryan Kerrigan ~ Purdue - Agent: Athletes First

17. New England – from Oakland (8-8) - OT Nate Solder ~ Colorado - Agent: Athletes First

18. San Diego (9-7) - DT Cory Liuget ~ Illinois - Agent: Tony Fleming (Impact Sports)

19. New York Giants (10-6) - CB Prince Amukamara ~ Nebraska - Agent: Todd France

20. Tampa Bay (10-6) - DE Adrian Clayborn ~ Iowa - Agent: Blake Baratz (The Institute for Athletes)

21. Cleveland (5-11) [via trade with Kansas City] - DT Phil Taylor ~ Baylor – Agent: Peter Schaffer (All-Pro Sports)

22. Indianapolis (10-6) - OT Anthony Castonzo ~ Boston College - Agent: Creative Artists Agency

23. Philadelphia (10-6) - OL Danny Watkins ~ Baylor - Agent: Lock, Metz, Malinovic

24. New Orleans (11-5) - DE Cameron Jordan ~ Cal - Agent: Octagon

25. Seattle (7-9) – OT James Carpenter ~Alabama – Agent: Priority Sports

26. Baltimore (12-4) - CB Jimmy Smith ~ Colorado - Agent: Drew Rosenhaus

27. Kansas City (10-6) - WR Jonathan Baldwin ~ Pittsburgh - Agent: Priority Sports

28. New Orleans (11-5) - RB Mark Ingram ~ Alabama - Agent: Lagardere Unlimited

29. Chicago (11-5) - OT Gabe Carimi ~ Wisconsin - Agent: Gary Uberstine (Premier Sports)

30. New York Jets (11-5) - DE Muhammad Wilkerson ~ Temple - Agent: Chad Wiestling (Integrated Sports Management)

31. Pittsburgh (12-4) - DE Cameron Heyward ~ Ohio State - Agent: SportsTrust Advisors

32. Green Bay (10-6) - OT Derek Sherrod ~ Mississippi State - Agent: Bus Cook

Notes

• Creative Artists Agency (Tom Condon and Ben Dogra) led all agencies with 5 players selected in the first round.  Most impressive about that fact is that all 5 players were selected before pick 24.  4 of those players were selected before pick 12.  In 2010, CAA represented 6 first round players on Day 1 of the Draft.
• Athletes First had the 2nd most picks with 4 players going in the first round.  Their drafted players were also selected in the top portion of the first round.  All 4 of their clients selected in the first round were taken before pick 18.
• SportsTrust Advisors, the new company created out of the merger of Pat Dye, Jr.’s ProFiles Sports Inc. and Jimmy Sexton’s Athletic Resource Management (ARM) had the 3rd most players drafted in the first round.  Julio Jones, and especially Christian Ponder, went higher than many had expected.
• A lot of familiar names on the list.  This year, the coming out party is for Patrick Lawlor of Galaxy Sports (representing Patrick Peterson).  Last year, Joe Haden was selected two spots later than Patrick Peterson was drafted this year.  Haden’s representative, Malik Hafeez Shareef, was also a brand new competitor for the large agencies to follow.

2011 NFL Draft Round 1 Picks (Player/Agent) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

The dry and dirty: The motion for a preliminary injunction on the NFL Lockout was granted.

If you want a nice history lesson, start reading from the beginning of the opinion.  Otherwise, skip to page 13 and pay close attention to the following blurb:

A lockout occurs when an employer lays off or ‘locks out’ its unionized employees during a labor dispute to bring economic pressure in support of the employer’s bargaining position. See American Ship Bldg. Co. v.N.L.RB., 380 U.S. 300, 301-302 (1965) (permitting management lockouts as a collective bargaining negotiating tool, as a counterpart to a union’s right to strike).

From here on, you know what Judge Nelson is going to say.  Since the players were technically not unionized when the NFL decided to lock out the players, it was technically not a justifiable lockout.  Read on and you will understand that Judge Nelson did not believe the decertification of the NFLPA as a union to be any sort of sham.

To justify an injunction on the lockout, the Plaintiffs had to show irreparable harm had it stayed in place.  This is the type of harm which cannot be tied to a particular dollar amount.  The other three elements needed to be proven were: fair chance at success on the merits, the irreparable harm outweighs the harm an injunction would cause the NFL, and that the injunction was in the public interest.  Shout out to agents Frank Bauer, Tom Condon, Neil Cornrich, Tony Agnone, William Vann McElroy, Donald Yee, and Neil Schwartz for providing persuasive declarations to the Judge.  Even more persuasive were the cited cases with authority where the Court “recognized that the threat of harm shown by Plaintiffs here, including lost playing time, constitutes irreparable harm.”

The Norris-LaGuardia Act of 1935: The NFL wanted to use this Act to preclude injunctive relief, but failed in its effort.  It failed because Judge Nelson found that the Plaintiffs were no longer represented by a Union, which is something the NFL continues to dispute, stating that decertification was a sham and that the NFLPA is still practically the same unit as it was prior to its purported transition to a trade association.  Judge Nelson also did not buy the NFL’s argument that the question of whether decertification was a sham or not was a decision to be made exclusively by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to decide, and/or that she should hold off on granting an injunction until after the NLRB ruled on the NFL’s unfair labor practice charge (regarding the supposed sham decertification).’

Skip to the end of page 24 and Judge Nelson starts to attack some of the NFL’s arguments, finding different interpretations of the holdings in cases cites by the NFL in an effort to defend its position.

Page 32 in bold: The Minimal, If Any, Benefit That Might Be Derived From Seeking The NLRB’s Expertise Here Is Clearly Outweighed By The Delay Involved, Particularly Where The Players Are Incurring Ongoing Irreparable Harm.  And there is the money shot.  Even though the NLRB has expertise with regards to decertification, Judge Nelson did not believe that staying the action and referring it to the NLRB was worth the substantial delay and continuance of irreparable harm.  Further, Judge Nelson did not think that an expert was necessary to analyze the decertification.

Here is another money shot on page 35: But there is no legal support for any requirement that a disclaimer be permanent. Employees have the right not only to organize as a union but also to refrain from such representation and, as relevant here, to “de-unionize.” 29 U.S.C. § 157

NFL Players Show Irreparable Harm; Preliminary Injunction On Lockout Is Granted from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Yet another Pro Tect Management client has found new representation in the wake of Gary Wichard’s death.  Wichard founded the company in 1980 and had a very hands-on approach with his clients.  With his passing, former Pro Tect clients including Antonio Cromartie and Calais Campbell have switched agencies.  Both of those players joined the large client roster of CAA Football, headed by Ben Dogra and Tom Condon.  Jamaal Anderson has also made a switch, but he has chosen Lagardere Unlimited instead of CAA.

Anderson is a 6’6 289lb defensive end for the Atlanta Falcons.  The former Arkansas Razorback is going into his 5th season with the team.  He was drafted as someone who could increase the number of sacks, but in 4 years, has only racked up a total of 3.5.  He is rather versatile, though, able to also play in the defensive tackle position.  The Falcons and Lagardere hope Anderson can turn his career around in his 5th season and put up numbers that were expected when he was drafted 8th overall in 2007.

On To The Next One: Jamaal Anderson from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

I knew that with Gary Wichard’s passing, Pro Tect Management would see many of its clients leave for new representation.  On March 22, 2011, I reported that Calais Campbell of the Arizona Cardinals switched from Pro Tect to Creative Artists Agency (CAA).  A month later and another Pro Tect client has made his way to CAA.  Antonio Cromartie, most recently of the New York Jets, is now a client of Tom Condon and Ben Dogra at CAA.

Cromartie is coming off what was probably his best professional year since racking up 10 interceptions in 2007.  He was a pass deflecting machine, deflecting a total of 17 attempted passes in 2010.  Only 43.9% of the passes thrown in Cromartie’s direction were completions.  Once/If a new collective bargaining agreement is signed, CAA has to expect a nice pay day for defensive back who will become a free agent.

Will more Pro Tect players leave the agency, and will those players pick CAA as their destination?  We know of one who recently picked a different agency.  Come back at 10 a.m. EST to find out more.

On To The Next One: Antonio Cromartie from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

It was suspected that with the passing of Gary Wichard, many of Pro Tect Management’s clients would be venturing to new agents and agencies.  While Wichard had been suspended by the NFLPA at the time of his death, it was speculated that he was still operating for his clients behind the scenes, which is why very few clients had left his firm.  Now that he is no longer around to advise the clients he recruited, it is likely that many of those clients will seek out new representation.  Calais Campbell has done just that.

The former University of Miami and current Arizona Cardinals defensive end has switched from Pro Tect Management to Ben Dogra and Tom Condon of Creative Artists Agency (CAA).  Since joining the Cardinals in 2008, Campbell has logged 13 sacks and 136 tackles.  Calais’ brother, Severin Campbell, is a 2011 NFL Draft eligible outside linebacker from Montana.  He has also signed with CAA for representation.

On To The Next One: Calais Campbell from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

• Jimmy Sexton – Co-Founder, SportsTrust Advisors
• Tom Condon – Football Agent, CAA
• Rick Smith – Agent, Priority Sports
• Mark Levin – Director of Salary Cap and Agent Administration, NFLPA
• Ray Anderson – VP of Football Operations, NFL
• Julie Roe Lach – VP Enforcement, NCAA
• Rachel Newman Baker – Director of Agent, Gambling and Amateurism Activities, NCAA
• Stacey Osburn – Associate Director of Public and Media Relations, NCAA
• Mike Slive – SEC Commisioner
• Larry Scott – Pac-10 Conference Commissioner
• Multiple Pac-10 Athletic Directors
• Pat Haden – Athletic Director, USC
• Dave Roberts – VP Athletic Compliance, USC

I believe the most forward thinking idea proposed by Haden at the Summit was to hire a recent graduate “to act as an ombudsman who can be a counselor and be viewed as independent.”  If Haden and other Athletic Directors want this particular plan to be effective, they will have to choose someone for each campus who is close enough with the players to gain access when appropriate, but cannot be afraid to report violations.  Furthermore, I think the last thing this person would provide is newfound trust between student-athletes and school administrators.  How can a department claim that someone it employs is also independent?  Instead, the new ombudsman may further the divide and cause student-athletes to become more wary of administrators’ motives.  However, I agree that something must be done to curb violations, and this particular idea may be a good starting point.  Haden also talked a bit about using “extenders.”

Dave Roberts also talked about the use of “extenders” to help educate players.  And he recognizes that the education needs to occur at a very early stage.

Talk is great.  Actions are better.

University of Southern California’s Agent Summit from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

When: Thursday, February 10, 2011 (10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.)

Where: Venable Baetjer Howard Moot Court Room at the Angelos Law Center (map)

Agenda:

9:30 – 10 am
Registration
Continental breakfast will be served for attendees in the lobby of the law center.

10-10:45 am
Welcome remarks

• Phillip J. Closius, Dean, University of Baltimore School of Law

Implementing the NBA’s Salary Cap and Collective Bargaining Agreement

• Andre Walters, J.D. ’05, Senior director of legal affairs, Charlotte Bobcats
• Michael Winger, Assistant general manager/legal and administration, Oklahoma City Thunder

10:45 am – 12 pm
Negotiating Professional Football’s Collective Bargaining Agreement

• Richard Berthelsen, General counsel, National Football League Players’ Association
• Dennis Curran, Senior vice president and general counsel, National Football League

12 – 1:15 pm
Lunch
Lunch will be served for attendees.

Luncheon Speaker
Managing a Professional Baseball Team in the Free Agency Era

• Andy MacPhail, President of baseball operations, Baltimore Orioles

1:15 – 1:30 pm
Break

1:30 – 3 pm
The Many Facets of a Professional Football Team
Influential sports agent and UB Law alumnus Tom Condon, J.D. ’81, will be joined by Will Witherspoon, linebacker for the Tennessee Titans, and other panelists involved in the day-to-day negotiations and operations of professional football teams for this discussion.

Cost: Free (RSVP)

Baltimore Law’s 2011 Pro Sports Symposium from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

On May 12 of this year, I reported that Shawne Merriman left Tom Condon of Creative Artists Agency’s (CAA) Football Division in favor of David Dunn of Athletes First.  At the time, I made a point to mention that we do not normally hear about a football player leaving a mega agency like CAA.  It turns out that it was just a temporary change.

Merriman is once again a client of Condon and his partner Ben Dogra at CAA Football.  I wonder if the company will tweet about it from its new Twitter account.  When Merriman fired Condon and Dogra, he likely was upset that CAA was unable to get him a long term contract.  Is the new change from Athletes First related to Merriman being waived by the San Diego Chargers and ending up on a non-contending Buffalo Bills?  He has been on the Bills injured reserve list since November 27, so I guess he has had enough time to think this over.

Merriman will once again be a free agent in 2011.  The gentlemen at CAA Football will be in charge of negotiating Merriman’s next deal…at least for the time being.

On To The Next One: Shawne Merriman from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules