Drew Rosenhaus
Rosenhaus in 2003
Born (1966-10-29) October 29, 1966 (age 57)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materUniversity of Miami
Duke University School of Law
OccupationNFL sports agent
Years active1989–present

Drew Jordan Rosenhaus (born October 29, 1966) is an American sports agent who represents professional football players. He owns the Miami-based sports agency Rosenhaus Sports, and has negotiated over $7 billion of NFL contracts.[1][2][3]

Early life and education

Rosenhaus was born on October 29, 1966, in South Orange, New Jersey. Four years later his family moved to North Miami, Florida. When young, Rosenhaus was a fan of the Miami Dolphins and attended home games and practices.[4][5]

Rosenhaus attended the University of Miami School of Business at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida, where he graduated in 1987. He attended law school at Duke University School of Law, graduating with a Juris Doctor in 1990.[5][6][7]

Career

Rosenhaus (left) with client Zach Thomas in 2002

In 1989, Rosenhaus became a registered sports agent and at the age of 22, he was the youngest registered sports agent at the time.[1][2][4] As a University of Miami alumnus, many of his clients and contacts came from the Miami Hurricanes football program.[6][7]

His company operates under the name Rosenhaus Sports Representation (RSR). Other principals in the firm include Rosenhaus' brother Jason, who serves as the firm's vice president, and Robert Bailey, the firm's director of marketing.[8]

After the 2011 NFL Lockout, Rosenhaus negotiated more than 90 contracts, worth about $600 million, in one month.[4]

In 2022, Rosenhaus negotiated a four-year, $120 million contract for then Kansas City Chiefs' wide receiver Tyreek Hill with the Miami Dolphins, which made Hill the highest paid wide receiver in NFL history by average annual contract value and total guaranteed compensation.[9]

Notable clients

Rosenhaus represents more than 170 players, including several high-profile clients, many of which are known for having eccentric personalities.[4] Notable players Rosenhaus has represented or represents include Aaron Jones, Antonio Brown, Chad Johnson, Frank Gore, Rex Grossman, Rob Gronkowski, LeSean McCoy, Jimmy Smith, Plaxico Burress, Terrell Owens, Tyreek Hill, Warren Sapp, and Darren Waller.[4][5][10][11][12]

Willis McGahee

In January 2003, University of Miami running back Willis McGahee suffered a complex and serious knee injury in his final college game during the Fiesta Bowl, the national championship game that year. One month later, he signed with Rosenhaus who predicted that, despite the injury, McGahee would be a first round NFL draft pick in the 2003 NFL Draft.[13] During the draft, cameras would cut to live shots of McGahee and Rosenhaus talking on their cell phones, giving the impression that they were communicating with teams, even though they were in fact speaking with each other. The Buffalo Bills selected McGahee in the first round as the 23rd overall choice in the draft. After reconstructive surgery and physical rehabilitation, McGahee signed a five-year contract with the Bills worth about $16 million.[1][13]

Terrell Owens

After the 2005 Terrell Owens controversy with the Philadelphia Eagles, Rosenhaus attended a press conference with the client. Rosenhaus responded to the majority of journalists' inquiries by asking for the "next question." The incident contributed to the title of Rosenhaus's second book Next Question: An NFL Super Agent's Proven Game Plan for Business Success.[14][15]

Johnny Manziel

In March 2016, after his previous agent terminated their contract, Rosenhaus began to represent Johnny Manziel, the first freshman in the history of college football to win the Heisman Trophy, on the condition that Manziel sought treatment for substance abuse. On April 19, after only representing Manziel for a month, Rosenhaus ended his contract with Manziel because he never met his deadline to seek treatment.[16]

Media appearances

Rosenhaus is the author of two books. The first is his autobiography A Shark Never Sleeps: Wheeling and Dealing with the NFL's Most Ruthless Agent, published in 1997.[17] The second book, published in 2008, is Next Question: An NFL Super Agent's Proven Game Plan for Business Success.[14] In 1996, he became the first sports agent to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated.[5]

He has been featured on several television programs including CBS's 60 Minutes,[4] HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel[18] and Showtime's Inside the NFL.[10] Additionally, Rosenhaus appeared as himself on the sitcom Arli$$ and is a weekly contributor on "Sports Xtra," WSVN Miami's Sunday night sports wrap-up show.[19] He was also featured in ESPN documentaries The U and The Dotted Line.[20][21]

Rosenhaus has appeared in commercials for Burger King and ESPN's Sportscenter.[22][23][24]

Rosenhaus made a cameo appearance in the 1996 film Jerry Maguire. Also, the persona of Jerry Maguire was reportedly based on Rosenhaus.[4] In 1998, he appeared as himself in the HBO series, Arli$$.[25] In 1999, he appeared in the movie about professional football, Any Given Sunday.

References

  1. ^ a b c "NFL 95: Drew Rosenhaus' Cell Phone". mmqb.si.com. Time Inc. July 8, 2014. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Chat with Drew Rosenhaus". espn.go.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  3. ^ "The World's Most Powerful Sports Agents". forbes.com. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "The Player: NFL Super Agent Drew Rosenhaus". cbsnews.com. CBS Interactive Inc. October 9, 2011. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d Bamberger, Michael; Yaeger, Don (July 15, 1996). "So, Sue Me! His No-Holds-Barred Tactics Infuriate NFL Executives, But Drew Rosenhaus, The Self-Styled Dark Knight of Sports Agents, Isn't About To Apologize". si.com. Time Inc. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Sports Agent Profile, Agent: Drew Rosenhaus". sports-agent-directory.com. Archived from the original on April 22, 2014. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  7. ^ a b Eddy, Brian (April 22, 1999). "Rosenhaus: Here to stay". espn.go.com. ESPN/Starwave Partners. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  8. ^ Garber, Greg (June 7, 2005). "Rosenhaus' success draws cries of foul play". sports.espn.go.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  9. ^ "Tyreek Hill: Inside His Record-setting Contract with the Dolphins". BOARDROOM. March 23, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  10. ^ a b "Agent: Plaxico Burress will play in 2011". sports.espn.go.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. January 28, 2011. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  11. ^ Graham, Tim (April 13, 2009). "Agent: Zach Thomas chooses Chiefs over Jets". espn.go.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  12. ^ "Antonio Brown takes photo with Drew Rosenhaus in Pittsburgh". Pittsburgh Steelers. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
  13. ^ a b "Bills: Agent did not influence decision". sports.espn.go.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. April 27, 2003. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  14. ^ a b Heitner, Darren (October 21, 2008). "Book Review: Next Question". bleacherreport.com. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  15. ^ Rosenhaus, Drew; Jason Rosenhaus (September 2008). Next Question: An NFL Super Agent's Proven Game Plan for Business Success. Penguin Group. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-425-22344-4. Retrieved July 30, 2010.
  16. ^ "Drew Rosenhaus officially ends relationship with Johnny Manziel". ESPN.com. April 19, 2016.
  17. ^ A shark never sleeps: wheeling and dealing with the NFL's most ruthless agent. 1997. OCLC 37842354.
  18. ^ "RealSports with Bryant Gumbel From 1995 to present". hboarchives.com. HBO Archives. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  19. ^ Berardino, Mike (August 9, 2009). "Miami Dolphins: Drew Rosenhaus Finally Speaks Again On Matt Roth". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  20. ^ "The U (2009) Full Cast & Crew". imdb.com. IMDB.COM, Inc. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  21. ^ Heitner, Darren (October 11, 2011). "ESPN's "The Dotted Line" – A Documentary About Sports Agents". sportsagentblog.com. Sports Agent Blog. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  22. ^ Dilbert, Ryan (November 3, 2011). "The 100 Funniest SportsCenter Commercials". bleacherreport.com. Bleacher Report, Inc. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  23. ^ "Drew Rosenhaus Discusses Misconceptions About Sports Agents". sportsbusinessdaily.com. American City Business Journals. March 22, 2007. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  24. ^ Nudd, Tim (August 30, 2006). "Drew Rosenhaus enjoying his 15 minutes". adweek.com. AdWeek. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
  25. ^ "Special Agent". Rider University. July 23, 2020. Retrieved February 13, 2022.

External links