DREW ROSENHAUS ON “NEXT QUESTION”

[Editor’s note: Agents Drew and Jason Rosenhaus have authored a new book, titled “Next Question,” published by Berkeley Hardcover. Pursuant to our new PFT Book Club thing, we invited Drew to submit a guest column regarding his book. You can purchase it by clicking the “Next Question” ads on the site.] You read Pro Football Talk because you want to know what’s really going on. You want to know the stories the reporters can’t or won’t tell you. “Next Question” takes it one step further and tells you everything you ever wanted to know about the business of the NFL. I’ll take you inside the NFL front offices with Jerry Jones, Bill Parcells, and Dan Snyder. We’ll take you into the homes, offices, and hang out spots of superstar players like Terrell Owens, Jeremy Shockey, Clinton Portis, Warren Sapp, and dozens more. “Next Question” is all about the roller coaster ride you have to survive in order to overcome the challenges of being an agent and making it to the top of the crazy NFL world. No story personifies “Next Question” better than the Terrell Owens ongoing saga. I first signed Terrell as a client in April 2005. He had just helped bring the Eagles to the Super Bowl. Toward the end of the 2004 season, Terrell suffered a broken leg. Recovering in miraculous time, Terrell risked his career to help his team and delivered an outstanding Super Bowl performance. Although he had only played one year into a seven-year $48.6 million contract, Terrell felt that he had outperformed his contract. When he and I crossed paths for the first time in April 2005, I agreed and he hired me shortly thereafter to get him a new contract. This was no small task as the Philadelphia Eagle front office was as tough as they come.As expected, they refused. A line was drawn in the sand and a battle of wills ensued. Seven weeks into the 2005 season, after the nation followed the drama of Terrell not getting along with his quarterback and coaches, Terrell was suspended and sent home for the rest of the season, costing him $2,489,705. Instead of getting my client a new deal, he lost a fortune, was suspended, and his season was over. Forget the raise, the experts predicted we’d be lucky to get the minimum next year. As I faced the music at a now infamous press conference on Terrell’s front lawn, a reporter tore into me, rhetorically asking on national TV, “Drew, what have you done for T.O. other than get him kicked off the team?”I felt embarrassed and was in pain, but I took it and stood tall, answering, “Next Question.” At that time, things looked like they were going from bleak to hopeless but I never gave up. Neither did Terrell. Despite being buried alive, we kept fighting our way out. That’s what “Next Question” is all about. It’s more than an answer. It’s our philosophy that no matter how impossible the situation appears, always believe that you can find a way to win through hard work and smart work. The principle of “Next Question” is to block out the negativity and focus on what to do next in order to win. That’s what we did and that’s how Terrell became a Dallas Cowboy in 2006 earning $31.5 million over the next three seasons instead of $20 million with the Eagles. The “Next Question” principle is one of a dozen that I learned the hard way during my 20-year roller coaster ride as an NFL agent. The “Next Question” book is all about those principles which made me pay when I ignored them and brought me success in one of the toughest businesses when I followed them. Put yourself in my shoes, then apply them to your business, and they should do the same for you.