NFL Nails is getting a second chance

The Dolphins' guard said players are unprepared for second careers.
By ALEX MARVEZ
SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Jamie Nails couldn't believe his career might be over.
After earning more than $1 million in four NFL seasons, the offensive lineman found himself out of football, released by the Dolphins during the 2001 pre-season. With no other teams showing interest, Nails was in a world that many athletes aren't prepared to visit.
The real world.
Required to wait three hours for a doctor's appointment, Nails realized the preferential treatment he was accustomed to as an NFL player was gone. So were big earnings, as Nails' salary dropped from $525,000 with the Buffalo Bills in 2000 to $3,500 when he became an assistant coach for the Dillard High football team.
Nails was fortunate to receive a second chance in the NFL and is the Dolphins' starting left guard. But he returned knowing how fleeting a football career can be.
"I don't think a lot of guys here are prepared for life after football," Nails said. "The reality of not playing doesn't set in unless you're an older guy or you've had injuries before. Right now, everybody is young and healthy. They don't realize it."
NFL's Rookie Symposium
Such an attitude is all too prevalent at the NFL's Rookie Symposium, held this week in West Palm Beach. All 262 players selected in April's draft are required to attend the event, designed to help ease transition from college to pro.
Among mandatory sessions is a panel discussion, Success in the NFL and Life after Football. Arizona running back Emmitt Smith, Indianapolis quarterback Peyton Manning, San Diego defensive end Marcellus Wiley and former Dolphins linebacker John Offerdahl are guest speakers.
"We talk about lifestyles now and after football," said Mike Haynes, a Hall of Fame cornerback who is the league's vice president of player and employee development. "Guys really need to be thinking about life after football and have a plan. You never know when your career is going to end."
Haynes said the average NFL career lasts four seasons, which gives players a chance to accumulate significant wealth. Upper-echelon stars and high draft picks should earn enough to never need a 9-to-5 job.
But for most players, football won't be the only profession they ever have, which makes a recent survey by the NFL Players Association particularly disturbing to Haynes. He said the study revealed that only 14 percent had a job or profession lined up for when they retired.
"Guys just do not want to think about not playing in the NFL even though they know the day is going to come," Haynes said. "Our job is to educate the player that at all times the reality is out there."
Because of the importance teams place in their off-season workout programs, players don't have the same amount of free time to pursue other employment opportunities as those of previous generations. But Haynes is frustrated that so many chances to prepare for life after football through NFL programs go unused.
Jamie Allen, the Dolphins' director of player development, said safety Scott McGarrahan is the team's only member enrolled in a continuing education program this off-season.
That program helps players and spouses earn bachelor's or graduate degrees through local colleges and correspondence courses.
"I'm very disappointed in the numbers," Allen said. "The high-profile guys are not a problem. It's not those guys I worry about. It's the guys in the middle somewhere who are not thinking about when they're done here. When those guys are out, it's like 'Now what do I do?""
Post-football education
Haynes has taken steps to begin post-football education at the college level by meeting with members of the National Association of Academic Advisors for Athletics.
Haynes hopes players may be able to avoid some major financial mistakes, such as over-spending on luxury items prior to the draft, if they are given advice before being able to sign with an agent and/or financial adviser.
"You hear about guys on the news that have won a Super Bowl and had the big contracts that are now selling (drugs) and stealing," said Dolphins fullback Sedric Irvin, who worked as a substitute teacher and assistant coach at South Miami High last year while recovering from a knee injury.
"They didn't have a plan. I'd say out of 53 guys, you've probably got more than half with a good plan. The other guys, they don't have a clue."