NFL Player Engagement

NFL Player Engagement (PE) takes a four-pillar approach to supporting NFL players and their families during their NFL career and beyond: Continuing Education, Financial Literacy, Professional Development, and Personal Development.

Through peer-to-peer engagement and direct outreach, PE’s innovative programs and services assist players and provide them with the resources necessary to make the most of their lives on the field and away from the game.

From aiding players with building their brands and managing their finances, to supporting their physical, mental and financial well-being, the goal of the Player Engagement department is to provide the best community of care to serve, equip, empower, and support the player and his entire ecosystem during and after his playing days.

“We are committed to setting up players and their families for success starting from the day they enter the league, to long after their playing days are over,” says Troy Vincent, NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations. “Whether a player wants to go back to school, start a new business, or learn about financial planning, the NFL family and Player Engagement are here to support.”

NFL Player Engagement offers:

• Continuing Education: Providing players and Legends with the tools to reach their educational goals. In partnership with colleges and universities across the country, the Continuing Education Program offers individualized education plans for degree completion with undergraduate, graduate or certification programs.
• Financial Literacy: Providing engaging and unbiased education through programs and seminars that seek to improve the financial decision-making ability of players.
• Professional Development: Creating meaningful development opportunities for players and Legends, including football relevant onboarding and future career skills.
• Personal Development: Assisting players, Legends and their families as they live healthy and fulfilling lives — mentally, physically and holistically — before, during, and after their playing experiences.
• Resources and support for all current players to set them up for success on and off the field.
• Programs that assist current players and Legends in making the most of their life and careers after their playing days.

Player Engagement hosts clinicians and staff at annual conferences and trainings to share best practices.

• Clinician Summit – Clinicians from NFL clubs share knowledge on how to best serve players. Topics include reducing stigma, ethical and legal issues, mental health and rookie transitions.
• Mental Health Symposium – Players, Legends, mental health organizations, caregivers and medical providers raise awareness of mental health.
• Directors of Player Engagement Annual Meeting – Those who work with players every day exchange ideas and share resources.

Player Engagement (PE) provides each player and those closest to him — family, coaches and anyone he looks to for support — with programs and tools to help him succeed as he enters the league, during his career and long after he hangs up the pads.

PE touches on every aspect of a player’s life. A player’s success is not only measured in the wins and accolades achieved on the playing field, rather it is a combination of those achievements and   the achievements and life experiences away from the game.

Here’s a look at the programs the NFL and its partners provide to help every player before, during and after his football career.

Life After the Game

Eventually, every football player has to walk away from the game he loves. Players, who have pursued their football careers with unwavering dedication for most of their lives, may struggle with this transition. That’s why the NFL provides former players with information, education and opportunities so that they can continue to make an impact, whether in football or in other pursuits.

The same qualities that led to their success in football — a strong work ethic, leadership skills, commitment and determination — help players build a prosperous and healthy future off the field. Former NFL players are lawyers, entertainers, bankers and, not surprisingly, coaches, officials and executives.

NFL Player Engagement Next/Legends and its partner organizations work with players and assist them in identifying their next career paths, connect with peers and legends, and learn ways to live well long after they play their final down.

Explore New Careers

• At the NFL Business Academy, business leaders provide current and former players and their significant others with the wisdom, insight and practical skills needed to own, build and operate a business and to evaluate business opportunities. The program emphasizes franchising, real estate and product design.

• NFL Industry Boot Camps give transitioning players hands-on opportunities to explore careers and gain experience in a variety of areas, including broadcasting, advanced broadcasting, personal finance and sports media.

• Coaching programs offer former players a chance to stay connected to the game from the sidelines. They include the Bill Walsh NFL Minority Coaching Fellowship, the NFL-NCAA Champion Forum for potential head coaches and the NFL-NCAA Coaches Academy for eligible players training to coach at the collegiate level.

• The Legends Officiating Development Program gives former players an accelerated path into a football officiating career. NFL alumni get the opportunity to use their unique knowledge of football and world-class athleticism to stay involved with the game they love.
• Active players can use their off seasons to prepare for life after the game by working with Player Engagement on career development. PE will help a player customize his offseason with opportunities to learn about a career through a job shadow or an internship, or to build his professional network and develop skills that he can use in all aspects of his life.

• NFL Continuing Education Program (CEP) assists current and former NFL players in finding educational opportunities to prepare for life after football. Whether it’s completing an undergraduate degree or pursuing graduate studies, the CEP partners with colleges and universities to design plans that allow players to achieve their educational goals. The CEP assists players with identifying accredited schools, providing guidance on meeting admission requirements and preparing their applications.

Stay Connected

• The NFL Legends Community celebrates and recognizes everyone who played in the NFL — whether for one game or for ten seasons. NFL Legends celebrate, educate, embrace and connect all former NFL players around the country with each other, their former teams and the league. Legends representatives help players to stay connected to their football family and to learn about programs and benefits available to them now that their playing careers are over.
• The NFL Bridge to Success Program connects players entering or leaving the league with NFL Transition Coaches — highly trained former players who mentors their peers and offer support and guidance to help players move toward their total wellness goal.

Get More Support 

The NFL partners with several organizations to provide current and former players — no matter how long they have been out of the league — and their families with resources and support:

• The NFL Players Association assists current and former players and anyone in the NFL family with financial guidance, legal support and health and wellness information.

• The NFL Player Care Foundation offers assistance to qualified former players experiencing financial hardship or certain health issues.

• The Gene Upshaw Player Assistance Trust Fund, created and overseen by the Professional Athletes Foundation, provides financial assistance to former professional and amateur football players in crisis.

• The Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund, founded by former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka, provides former players who played more than three years in the league (and meet other criteria) with assistance related to medical, dental, housing and other emergency needs.

• The Trust is an organization committed to a former player’s wellbeing. With customized gameplans, The Trust meets each former player where he is in his transition. The Trust provides transitioning football players with the support they need to ensure their success off the field and in life. Wherever you are in your transition there is a team that is ready to assist with what's next.

Stay Healthy

• NFL Total Wellness initiative works to provide current and former players and their families with a comprehensive set of resources designed to help everyone stay healthy and live well — physically, emotionally and financially — long after they have left the game.

• Pensions and disabilities department informs current and former players who have certain medical or mental health conditions or are at retirement age about any financial benefits they are eligible to receive, including monthly pensions.

Resources for Active/Former Players

The NFL’s commitment to ensuring that every incoming player has the tools necessary to succeed on and off the field begins as soon as they enter the league. All first-year players — drafted and undrafted — participate in the NFL Rookie Transition Program, the most comprehensive onboarding program in professional sports. The program reaches all NFL rookies and provides them with an understanding of the league’s expectations of them, the benefits they have earned and the local resources available to them.

NFL Player Engagement Life provides current NFL players with personal and professional development resources to help them and their families take full advantage of the opportunities afforded to them by their NFL experience.

The league’s programs and partnerships connect players with experts who can help them take care of themselves personally, emotionally, physically and financially now and after they stop playing, and help them continue their education.

• NFL Life Line is a confidential, independently operated resource for current and former NFL players, coaches, team and league staff, and their family members. They can call (800) 506-0078 or chat online to talk to trained counselors who assist with personal or emotional crises. The system protects callers’ privacy and does not share any information with the NFL, teams or other organizations.

• The NFL’s Players Assistance and Counseling Services Program Employee Assistance Program (EAP), operated by Cigna, connects members of the NFL family with specially designed services. The EAP is available for current and former players and anyone who lives in the household of an eligible current or former NFL player and includes access to eight free confidential counseling sessions per issue.
• A network of mental health professionals regularly consults with the league and with clubs on best practices for enhancing total wellness among teams, staff and their families. They encourage and empower players and staff to seek support when they are dealing with personal and mental health issues.

Prep

The NFL knows that developing talent is about more than creating great football players — it’s about creating great people. That’s why the league supports programs that provide young men and women with the resources and skills to help them achieve success in life, no matter where their path may lead.

NFL Player Engagement Prep focuses on aspiring collegiate and professional athletes. Stressing education and degree completion, community service and leadership development, the programs provide student-athletes in football and other sports with advice, training, information, tools and resources to assist them in finding success on and off the field.

Not all players make it to the pros, so the NFL looks for ways that football can be a catalyst for greater personal development. It’s about more than just building the next generation of gridiron stars; it’s about building the next generation of great leaders — on and off the field.