Jalen Hurts made history in 2023, not just with his performance on the field but in off-field ventures as well. The Philadelphia Eagles’ star quarterback broke new ground by assembling an all-female management team, becoming the first player in NFL history to do so.
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Men dominate player-management positions in the NFL — 95% of certified NFL agents are male. Hurts wanted to break away from the mold. However, he also had valid reasons for it. The QB has shared that he admires women because of the hard work they put in without ever receiving as much credit as men.
“I admire anyone who puts their head down and works for what they want,” Hurts wrote on social media. “And I know women who do that daily, but they don’t get the praise as men. I have seen that with tons of different women in my life that are hustlers. Athletes, coaches, women in the business world of sports.”
“And they [women professionals] deserve the flowers too. So if me saying something about it brings more attention to it, then I’m all for that,” added Hurts.
Well, Hurts has not just spoken, he has done “something about it” too. So, let’s meet the team.
Firstly, there’s Nicole Lynn, the leader of the group — the contract and career strategist. She made her move with Hurts in his DMs following his 2020 season at Oklahoma, asking if he had an agent. “Hey, have you picked an agent? If not, I’d love to link,” she wrote. That text led to a major partnership.
Nicole was the one who negotiated Hurts’ record-setting $255 million contract in 2023, which made him the highest-paid player in the game at the time. Evidently, she’s done her job well for Hurts.
Nicole Lynn sent Jalen Hurts a “hail mary” Instagram DM after his college career ended:
“Hey, have you picked an agent? If not, I’d love to link.”
Hurts then signed with her, and Lynn has now made him the highest-paid player in NFL history (5-yr, $255M).
Shoot your shot pic.twitter.com/1ZrOxeO7oE
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) April 17, 2023
Next, there’s Chantal Romain, the media relations expert and VP of communications. Before working with Hurts for Klutch Sports, Chantel worked for the NBA as director and manager of player programs and communications. She’s an expert at showing players how to advertise themselves to the league and the world.
Moving on, there’s Shakeemah Simmons-Winter, Hurts’ publicist. She has a lot of experience working in PR and communications. Shakeemah worked for ESPN for over three years as a senior publicist and eventually became the manager of corporate communications for the NBA, MLB, and Little League. She also spent some time working for Madison Square Garden and the New York Knicks.
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Penultimately, there’s Rachel Everett. She oversees Hurts’ marketing and branding. While the sports marketing expert doesn’t work directly with the Klutch Sports Group, she’s in constant communication with them. For the past year, she has directly worked for Hurts’ foundation. Everett is also self-employed and the co-founder of ESM Sports.
Last but not least is Jenna Malphrus. She has an interesting job history. Before joining Hurts, it looked like she would go into sales. However, Jenna became the client services manager for Hurts four years ago and hasn’t looked back since. Now, she’s the senior client manager.
Hurts has a great team around him with years of experience. Not only are they the only all-women management team ever, but they are professionals who are great at what they do. Today, Hurts continues to be one of the best forward-facing athletes in the NFL, and these women deserve praise for it as well.
Maybe in the future, athletes will look at Hurts’ template. Sports agencies are a male-dominant career. Hopefully, these women can be the face of change in that business.
