I just read a fluff piece on Keels that he probably wrote himself under a different name. Bunch of bullshit about how young he is, how hard he works, blah, blah, blah. It was sickeningly biased. But what I did find interesting and informative were some of Keels' past exploits. Keels got his feet wet when he picked up Koren Robinson before the 2001 draft. Robinson has struggled with alcoholism and has bounced from team to team. He's out of football now. Keels neglected to deny Robinson's involvement in the Vikings love boat scandal before Koren's name could be dragged into the headlines and accidentally dropped the ball when he told newspapers Koren went back to rehab. (From Wiki: On July 6, 2006 Koren Robinson's agent, Alvin Keels, told the press Koren checked back into the South Carolina rehab center but did nothing wrong and would not go into details. When Koren heard it in the news he angrily denied he was in rehab and said he did not have a relapse.) Oops, not exactly a Jerry and Rod combo. Oh well, they don't all turn into superstars. Keels picked up another agent in the 2001 draft, our (former) very own Lamont Jordan. (That's right folks, Keels eats up our back-up backs!) Keels assured Jordan that he'd get him a whopper of a deal, and he delivered: a big ol' bucket of dough from Al Davis and a starting tailback position on the worst franchise in football. Lamont's off-the-field lack of discipline resulted in on-the-field injuries- he's now jockeying for carries in Denver's crowded backfield. But hey, he got paid, right? Larry Johnson got paid, too; he hired Keels just in time for his record-setting 2007 contract. Of course, that one got a bit messy, didn't it? LJ held out well into the preseason, missed a lot of practice, got injured during the season and has since been a shadow of his former self. (He also spit on some chick so hard that he was charged with assault, which is pretty bad-ass, but I digress.) Keels quit (QUIT!) on Johnson half-way through last season. Interestingly enough, reports out of Chiefs training camp tell of a rejuvenated Johnson, intent on making smart decisions. Hmmm... I'm going to repeat that one more time just for emphasis: Alvin Keels quit on his biggest client. Moving on. After the positive reviews of the Oakland Raiders organization Keels received from Lamont Jordan, he marooned two more of his clients there, Gibril Wilson and DeAngelo Hall. Wilson and Hall each signed contracts for a gajillion, bazillion dollars, very little of which they are likely to pry free from Al Davis' icy grasp. Apparently, Wilson and Hall could have used somebody in their corners prior to their Raider paydays. Ya know, somebody to say, "Hey, I might not be able to get you as much elsewhere, but another client of mine really wasn't happy here, we should find a better spot for you." But the agent's job is just to get you paid, right? Valuable career advice be damned! Wilson and Hall seem happy with their new teams, the Dolphins and the Redskins. For now. Now we come to Alvin Keels' botch-job coup de grace, Andre Smith. Smith missed out on one of the biggest honors in a football player's life, playing in a bowl game. Why? Chatting it up with representation. Big NCAA no-no. I haven't read anything that stated Keels was the agent Smith spoke with prior to that game, but it seems likely. What we do know is that Keels was Smith's agent prior to and during the combine, when Smith lit about 20 million dollars on fire with his peculiar absence. Reports of Smith being overweight, firing his schmuck agent, rehiring his schmuck agent, botching interview questions and generally just being a shady dude permeated the internet, and a player many people thought would be a sure-fire number one pick slid out of the top five. He remains unsigned by one of the worst franchises in football. So that's Alvin Keels' resume. He represents a couple other guys, nobody special. You can make your own judgments about the quality of advice Keels' clients have received in the past. Feel free to learn how many cell phones Keels has on him at once in the fluff piece: Young Enough: The Story of a Shitty, Quick-Money Pro Agent But whatever you do, do not expect this man to act in the best interests of the New York Jets or Leon Washington.
It don't matter to me but if Washington is stupid enough to turn down what is on the table now then don't be surprised if the Jets break off negotiations and start talking to Jones. As I have said all along they aren't going to keep both of them at that kind of money.
The best backup RB in the league is probably Chester Taylor and he only makes 3 million a year and still gets more carries than Washington does all while backing up the best back in the league.
Keels' players (Larry Johnson, Andre Smith) were also big holdouts in Kansas City two years ago and now Smith is going on right now. He just will not settle for anything less than an extreme amount of money, Kansas City gave in, Cincinnati and the Jets, I have a feeling, will not.
It is what it is. Agents who do nothing but seek the highest possible deal for their clients tend to get that although they also tend to have unhappy clients after awhile, because money really isn't everything. Scott Boras, shudder... BTW, the answer to the current confrontational management vs players systems in all sports is total free agency. That would solve a lot of problems, starting with the old "you have to sign my guy because if you don't you won't have a..." In total free agency 20+ runningbacks of some quality would come free every year with maybe a half-dozen to a dozen locked up long-term. It'd be very hard for any of those 20 to break the bank because everybody would know they were ok but not great and by the way if you miss your shot at one guy there's always another one waiting to get signed. You could also easily sign a guy for ONE year just to play for you next year and then revisit the situation the year after. The current situation, in which only a few runningbacks (and virtually no starters) come free each year just drives up the price of the draft picks and the rare vet free agent tremendously.
It makes me wonder about Washington's character, judgment and commitment to football (rather than money) that he would sign with Keels. It is also telling that Washington has not accepted the Jets last offer, which means to me that he has turned it down.
Keels probably sold him better than his previous agent. Since every report from reporters, coaches, and players are extremely positive about Leon - I have a feeling its about his douchebag agent and not Leon himself. Most players rarely are heavily involved with negotiations. Its almost all Agent-Team related.
Yeah but If I'm Leon and I read on the news I have been offered that kind of money I pick up the phone and call Keels telling him I want to sign that deal.
But unless Washington is an idiot, he knows about Keels' history and he knows about the history of his own negotiations. It seems that Keels sold Washington on him getting the same $6 million Sproles got and now Washington has tunnel vision. The Jets are not giving Washington $6 million and the $5 million offer is just sitting there. Ultimately, the failure to reach an agreement comes down to the player and not the agent. This is on Washington. He chose Keels.
i can imagine that happens a lot, but I wonder if these players are then sold bullshit by their agent about how its not good enough because they deserve more because they are gods, etc. Keels looks like the kind of guy who will do that. If Keels was smart, Andre Smith would have never gone through the preseason he's had. Then again, if Smith was smart. Keels wouldn't be his agent. Keels is a pitbull with no finesse, and the Smith debacle had to hurt his reputation.
^ for one year. He has the franchise tag. He's making the average of the top 5 RB salaries for a single season.
Oh ok, I thought they gave him a contract extension. Still Leon is alot more than a backup Running Back.
Leno is more than a back up running back, but wnats to get paid like a guy who is a sure fire #1 and does not split carries. He wants MJD money but is not the guy in NY like Jones-Drew is foer the Jags. They have no one behind him and a 7th round pick is in the lead to be his primary backup. Leon, at best, is getting a little over 1/3 of the carries out of our back feild.
Its so funny to read people bash a man they have never even meet or talk about stuff they know nothing about. Hate is a very ugly thing people. Anyone who thinks that player isnt the one who has the say in how much money they want or will take is flat out dumb. If Leon was ok with 5 mil he would take it. Keels works for him and can be fired at anytime. Clearly Leon has a number he wants and he hired Keels to get it. As far as all the name calling of Keels thats just dumb..the Man just does he job which is get his clients paid..its not his job to hold grown mans hands of the field or tell them not to spit on women. How many of you would like to be called dumb because of what your boss does in his free time. If you think Leon is being greedy or doesnt deserve to be paid call him greedy..he knows what deal is on the table and he is a grown man..if wants the deal he can take it..keels is his agent not his daddy. Stop letting players hide behind there agents. Rosenhouse..Borres..all of them there not greedy there clients are..they know who gets them the most money..thats why they hire them. Rickey Williams signed what he though was a fair deal out of college how did that work for him..and how fast was his agent fired. If you cant understand the bussiness side of the game dont talk about it. Side note i thought it was a great story about Keels. A young successfull black man making millions and its not with a ball or microphone in his hand..i love it. But i can see why that would make alot of you mad.
I actually agree with the substance of this post. As fans we like to demonize agents so we can continue idolizing athletes. For example, look at the hate spewed towards Scott Boras every year around the time of the MLB draft--in contrast, you never hear anyone ripping the teenager who refuses to play because he thinks he's worth that extra $1 million. Same thing with Drew Rosenhaus--he charges 3% commission for each of his 100 something clients, you think it really matters to him whether a guy signs for $24 million or $25 million? If Leon Washington refuses to sign a contract don't blame his agent, blame Washington.
