There is no shortage of financial perils for NFL rookies, and Phil Savage is tying the Reese's Senior Bowl to an opportunity to make those rookies better-prepared to handle an NFL paycheck wisely. The game's executive director announced Tuesday a partnership with Morgan Stanley Global Sports & Entertainment to add a financial education program to the players' itinerary for the week.
And to Savage, it's not necessarily the high-dollar players that can benefit most.
"We tend to focus on the first- and second-rounders and players that make the most money, but what about the guy who ends up being a seventh-rounder or a college free agent, that ends up with one contract. How does he handle what he comes into?" said Savage, the former Cleveland Browns general manager who now operates the Senior Bowl. "This applies maybe even moreso to the fringe NFL player that might only have a two- or three-year career."
Translation: rookies with smaller contracts might have less to lose, but yet stand to gain the most from the program.
From overspending to fraud victimization and more, the pitfalls of wealth await pro athletes in all sports. Savage said former pro athletes Antoine Walker, a former NBA star, and ex-NFL linebacker Bart Scott are expected to conduct part of the presentation as well. Savage said the Senior Bowl's North and South squads, 55 players each consisting of some of the top senior NFL draft prospects each year, will participate in an interactive presentation at the end of the practice week.
"It's not a lecture, it's not going to be something where the players sit there and sleep through it," Savage added. "There's going to be a lot of engagement. It gives us a chance to offer something off the field that they're not going to get anywhere else on the front end of this pre-draft run-up."
The game, aired on NFL Network, will kick off Saturday, Jan. 30 at 1:30 p.m.
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