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NFL Players

One More Reason Why It Helps To Have An Agent?

I don’t want to ruin the suspense, but I need to divulge some important information in order to write this post; Shawn Merriman will be on this week’s Nightmare Clients of the Week. If you have not heard, he was suspended 4 games for violating the NFL substance abuse policy.
Now that I have gotten that out of the way, I want to bring up a point that ProFootballTalk.com brought up on October 24th:

For Merriman, the fact that he had no agent when he received the letter notifying him of the pending suspension made if far more likely that word of the development would make its way out, given that Merriman (as we’ve surmised, and we hear our instincts were accurate) told teammates about the situation in an effort to figure out what to do.

I must say, the discussion about this particular case of substance abuse in the NFL has received more media attention recently than any other NFL case that I can think about (and there sure are a lot of cases…just peruse some issues of Nightmare Clients of the Week). Still, I do not believe that Merriman has been criticized in the same way that Major League Baseball players are when information is received regarding their abuse of illegal substances.

If Merriman had an agent, would the word not have spread as far and as fast as it did? It seems like it would be a safer bet to confide in your agent who has a fiduciary duty to protect you over your teammates who have no such duty.

-Darren Heitner 

[tags]shawn merriman, sports agent, agent, san diego chargers[/tags]

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.