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Connecting Athletes With Each Other + Businesses

pro player connectJason Kyle has little to complain about.  The 6’3, 242 lb, 37-year-old long-snapper is in his 15th season in the NFL and is currently playing for his 6th team since entering the league.  That team, the New Orleans Saints, is 12-0, and Jason has played in all 12 games.  He works hard on and off the field and is not waiting until retirement to begin building his own business.  The business that he has created is well on its way to being a very successful endeavor.  On Monday, I chatted with Jason about Pro Player Connect, his company that aims to connect professional athletes with other professional athletes and businesses.

Jason has been building Pro Player Connect for roughly two years.  He has branded it as a place where professional athletes can network with one another and receive offers from national, regional, and local businesses.  Companies have also used the database to offer jobs to retired athletes, and over 30 such retired athletes have already been given work through those leads.  There are also many additional features planned for the future that involves interaction with fans.  Eventually, players will be able to create video chats and appearances, provide downloads, deliver athletic tips, and conduct various types of interviews.  It should not be a problem to build as the company just received its second round of funding.

At this point, most of the 1,000+ athletes using Pro Player Connect are professional football players.  Most likely, that number will increase tremendously since the NFL Players’ Association recently put its support behind Jason Kyle’s company.  On October 20, the NFLPA was proud and pleased to announce its support of Pro Player Connect.  With the NFLPA behind this project, Jason has already been able to roll out a new feature that helps athletes with their Workers’ Comp forms.

Athletes are not charged to use the service.  Instead, companies are charged a small fee per lead.  They pay to get an offer out to the players on the website and the offer is only released to the athletes targeted if the Pro Player Connect employees deem the offer to have value.  Speaking of employees, Jason told me that there are 3-full time employees and Jason puts roughly 3 hours per day into the company, which is a big time commitment for an active NFL player.

Should this service scare sports agents?  After all, doesn’t it make agents less needed?  Jason says no.  And he encourages agents to bring their clients to the website.  If the agent is involved, Pro Player Connect will copy the agent on all offers.  If the player signs up without the assistance of his agent, the agent will lose the opportunity to be involved in all offers that the player receives through Pro Player Connect.  Jason says that the offers can be anything from $500 for a local Monday Night Football appearance at a bar to $10,000 for an autograph appearance.

I told Jason that I am very impressed with his drive and passion concerning his product.  It really says a lot about a player who is able to put so much energy into a company while taking snaps in the NFL.  I wish him the best and continued success with Pro Player Connect.

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.

One reply on “Connecting Athletes With Each Other + Businesses”

I thinkk that’s an amazing company that they are building. I wish I was done with my degree to try to be a part of that company because I think its an amazing thing to.give back to the fans because sports would be nothing with fans. I wish them the best!

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