NFLPA SUSPENDS GREG WILLIAMS

The NFL Players Association has announced that agent Greg Williams has been suspended for a year. He also has been fined $35,000. The suspension, recently upheld by arbitrator Ken Shropshire, arose from Williams’ decision to charge a client for the full amount of his fee under a five-year, $21 million contract. Before the player received the full $21 million. The rules are fairly clear in this regard -- agents can’t collect their fees on money that has not yet been paid to the player. “This provision has been in the Regulations since they were first promulgated in 1984, and it plays an important role in protecting players from paying fees on compensation that is not received under an NFL Player Contract,” associate general counsel Tom DePaso. “Since most NFL contracts are not fully guaranteed, a club can terminate a contract and may not be obligated to pay the player the remaining compensation.” In this case, Williams immediately invoiced the player (who hasn’t been named) for three percent of the $21 million, which equates to$630,000. The player paid $200,000, even though Williams was only entitled to $40,500 based on the amount of money the player had received as of the date the payment was made. Frankly, it’s amazing to us that a guy who has been agenting since 1994 would pull something like this. Williams, who has been a certified contract representative since 1994, claimed that he didn’t know the rules. It’s pretty safe to say that he does now.