“His Dad Obviously”: Mystery Over Caleb Williams’ Contract Negotiations Gives NFL World the Chance to Get Creative

NFL fans, especially those on social media, do not hold back whenever an opportunity to troll presents itself. Recently, when Caleb Williams stated that he was not managing his contract negotiations, the headline had fans and the media buzzing. Everyone wanted to know who was doing the bidding for the newly drafted QB, given that he famously does not have an NFLPA-certified agent.

NBC quoted Caleb revealing that it was his lawyers and the people high up in the organization, along with his family, who were overseeing that aspect of his professional life. Moreover, as the first NIL superstar, navigating the financial landscape of the league should come easy to him.

Nevertheless, the breath of ambiguity present in the situation lends itself to many trolls from the NFL world. The uncertainty over who is managing Williams’ negotiations got a lot of fans thinking with their funny hats on. Here are some of the innocent-looking jibes at Williams:

In the case of Lamar Jackson, it is actually his mother who aided the QB in negotiating a deal with the Ravens. And considering that Williams’ father was in the news, fans were quick to playfully put the two things together.

There were also others who were pointing out the lack of mystery and the simple answer to his situation:

Williams has been thoroughly smart with his decisions in the league. The NFL money will not be the first big bucks he’s made. It is estimated that the total earnings from his NIL deals at USC were about $10 million, equivalent to what an average running back makes in the NFL. By not using an agent for his rookie deal, he might just end up saving hundreds of millions of dollars in the long run.

Williams Pays Hourly Rate to Lawyers for Drawing Up Contract

Instead of going the traditional route of hiring an agent after getting drafted by an NFL team, Williams has chosen to use NFLPA-certified lawyers to draw up his rookie contract. This was done because rookie contracts do not have much space for negotiation, as they follow strict guidelines outlined in the CBA.

Thus, when agents are hired by rookies, they often offer immediate incentives to secure a share of the second contract — one that they will actually work to maximize. Agents make these upfront investments in players as they transition from college.

Now, historically, this has been the norm. But of late, with the introduction of NIL, athletes like Williams already have millions in the bank. The incentive provided or that existed for the athletes to link up with agents in their rookie years does not apply anymore. Thus, we may see many more athletes going the Williams route in the coming future.