I recently sat in on a conference call that included Cris Collinsworth, Boomer Esiason, and Howie Long. A large part of the discussion centered on the 2011 NFL Draft. Collinsworth stated that it would not surprise him if 75% of the players selected in the 1st round play on defense (it ended up being 50%). He also said that he believed that Von Miller was the most talented player in the 2011 NFL Draft. Esiason agreed that Miller is the most talented player in the draft, adding that Miller is not the type of guy you need to worry about showing up in a S600 Mercedes. A big reason for that is because Miller is an intelligent, grounded person. But he also has good advisors by his side. Miller ended up being taken by the Denver Broncos with the 2nd overall pick in the Draft.
The Washington Post did a fantastic job of providing an in-depth background of Miller’s sports agent, Joby Branion of Athletes First. For a long time, I have known Branion as an intellectual, hard worker, who has the privilege of representing some of the best football players in the NFL. Recently, Branion was a panelist at the 2011 College Sport Research Institute (CSRI) Conference. As reported by the Washington Post, Branion’s path was not easy, but with hard work and determination, he has “made it.”
In 2007, when I first wrote a short Agent Spotlight on Branion, I had known that Branion was adopted, had to deal with the murder of his adopted murder, and that his adopted father was convicted for the killing even though he denied it. The Washington Post article linked above goes into much greater detail.
Now Branion is Executive Director at Athletes First. The company just had 10 clients selected in the first 4 rounds of the NFL Draft (including the aforementioned Von Miller). Congratulations to Branion; I hope for continued success in the future for him and his company.
