• Loading stock data...
Sunday, July 20, 2025

NFLPA Inspiring Players To Be More Than An Athlete

NFLPA #AthleteAnd
Photo Credit: Kevin Koski

The NFLPA is rolling out a new initiative asking players to define themselves beyond their playing careers – writing their own endings to the phrase “Athlete and ___.”

The motto is the brainchild of NFLPA Senior Player Manager of Player Affairs Dior Ginyard. Ginyard was reading Twitter comments about off-the-field football player stereotypes, and decided he wanted to help showcase the successes that many players had found in their careers beyond the NFL.

That led the NFLPA to create a new #AthleteAnd Workshop around its externship program. At the event in February, 24 active players met with executives from companies like LinkedIn and Twitter, as well as from the NFLPA and NBA, gaining insight into how to grow professional and leverage the opportunity their playing careers provide them.

The #AthleteAnd campaign is now being pushed even further. The NFLPA is reaching out to players to provide their own #AthleteAnd definition on social media, as well as capturing content around the concept at events. The organization is also giving players who share their message an ‘#AthleteAnd ____’ t-shirt and a Sharpie, so that they can fill in that blank themselves.

“We encourage all of the players to think of themselves as more than just football players,” said Ginyard. “That could be career-focused – maybe they’re an athlete and a photographer; it could be business-focused – an athlete and an entrepreneur or an investor; or perhaps it’s around education – an athlete and a graduate. Our goal is to really help the guys build confidence to figure out what their ‘and’ is.”

The phrase aims to encapsulate not only the pursuit of a career outside of football for players, but also how they can enhance their personal brand and continue their own education and personal growth – all providing them the confidence to define themselves as more than just an athlete.

This new campaign and content series comes at a crucial time for NFL players, who now on average have a career that lasts just three and a half years, and are facing a potential work stoppage following the 2020 season – making the ability to transition into a second career even more important.

“Even just five or ten years ago, it was taboo for players to express what they were interested in off the field,” said Brandon Parker, NFLPA communications manager. “Talking to some players, they want to focus on football and say ‘once I retired I can do these investments and build this business’ – we stress to them that their brand and stock is highest when you have that uniform on, so we want to help them find the time and bandwidth to pursue that while all eyes are still on them.”

READ MORE: Chase Minnifield Looks To Shift Entrepreneurial Stigmas for Athletes

Offering players career development tools and advice is nothing new for the NFLPA. However, Ginyard said rallying around this motto has allowed the organization to further evolve and hone its efforts.

“As part of our externship program, we’ve had a professional development day that was about resume building and elevator pitching – that was somewhat too in the weeds,” Ginyard said. “We wanted to take a step back, and get into how players view themselves and their identity – it can often be intimidating for a player to be with a top level executive if they just see themselves as an athlete, so we wanted to take that head on with a career development event.”

The NFLPA’s externship program saw 66 active players gain work experience this offseason at 27 different companies and organizations, ranging from Fanatics and Fox Sports to NASA and the LAPD.

The workshop featured sessions were hosted by a variety of executives, including Andrew Hawkins, a former NFL wide receiver who is now the director of business development of UNINTERRUPTED, and Carrie Leger White, chief operating office  of AthLife, which helps athletes pursue academic and career goals.

NFL linebacker Brandon Chubb, one of the 24 players who participated in the workshop, said that it helped him prepare for “life after football, even while football is going on.”

“I am an athlete, and I believe in myself as that, but the ability to gain insight and exposure allows me to expand upon that – I can be multiple words and adjectives beyond just an athlete,” he said.

READ MORE: NFL Helps Former Players Succeed In New Business Ventures

Asked how he would fill in his blank that followed athlete, Chubb described two of his off-the-field pursuits. He and his brother Bradley, who plays for the Denver Broncos, launched the Chubb Foundation in 2017, which he said aims to use “sports as a platform to activate human potential.” Brandon Chubb said he’s also working to open his own private equity firm by the end of 2019, and is in talks with an Austin-based business regarding an investment.

Parker said the message to players like Chubb is that by even becoming an NFL player “makes you one in a million – it takes incredible sacrifice and dedication to get to this point, so now how can you use those skills to translate to another industry?”

The NFLPA is aiming to make sure it’s highlighting the stories of players like Chubb who are pursuing their wide variety of passions off the field. For example, Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Josh Dobbs flew an F-16 fighter jet with the Air Force’s Thunderbird demonstration team this offseason; Brandon Copeland, the New York Jets linebacker, taught a financial literacy seminar at the University of Pennsylvania this spring.

[mc4wp_form id=”8260″]

Ginyard said the program will return again next February, expanding its programming and diving deeper into more engaging topics. He said the NFLPA also hopes to develop a network around the #AthleteAnd message so that players can share their personal experiences. The program may also be expanded to include athletes beyond the NFL, which could include WNBA and U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team players.

“There’s a fire drill that is inevitable when a playing career is over,” Ginyard said. “This is all about figuring out what does that second career look like, and where do your passions take you.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Ryan Field Construction
exclusive

First Look Inside Northwestern’s $862 Million New Ryan Field

Five big things FOS learned on our exclusive stadium tour.
Feb 7, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Calais Campbell (middle) receives the NFLPA Alan Page Community Award from executive director Lloyd Howell (left) and president) JC Tretter (right) at the NFLPA Press Conference at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center prior to Super Bowl LVIII.

What Comes Next After NFLPA Chief’s Sudden Resignation?

Howell quit on his own accord; he was not forced out.

New NFLPA Head Will Face Multibillion-Dollar Decisions

The next NFLPA leader will wrestle with a series of pressing issues.
Lloyd Howell

Scandal-Ridden NFLPA Chief Lloyd Howell Quits

The union executive director stepped down late Thursday night.

Featured Today

Jul 21, 2024; Ayrshire, SCT; Xander Schauffele celebrates with Claret Jug after winning the Open Championship golf tournament at Royal Troon.

The Boozy History and Traditions of The Open’s Claret Jug

The Open awards the world’s most famous wine decanter.
2025 PDC World Darts Championship Final - Luke Littler vs Michael Van Gerwen
July 16, 2025

A Teen Darts Prodigy Is Becoming Bigger Than the Game Itself

Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler is cashing in on his devastatingly accurate shot.
May 31, 2025; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Sydney McLaughin-Levrone (USA) reacts before the women's 100m hurdles during the Grand Slam Track Philadelphia at Franklin Field
exclusive
July 13, 2025

Track’s New Money Is Running Into Old Problems

The sport’s big-money era has hit some speed bumps in 2025.
Bobbleheads are seen at Vintage Indy Sports, Tuesday, April 29, 2025 in Speedway. The local sports memorabilia store opened recently.
July 12, 2025

Baseball’s Bobbleheads Are the Center of the Collectibles Universe

Baseball’s most important keepsake drives long lines—and big business.
Bradley Beal
exclusive
July 17, 2025

‘Brad Doesn’t Like Change’: Beal Agent Says He Wants Long-Term Clippers Deal

Beal agreed to a contract buyout with the Suns on Wednesday.
July 17, 2025

T.J. Watt Becomes NFL’s Highest-Paid Non-QB

Watt’s new Steelers contract comes with $108 million fully guaranteed.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

Dealmaker Jeffrey Kaplan maps the evolution of sports as an asset class
Oct 13, 2024; Chicago, IL, USA; Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya poses for a photo with the time clock after finishing first in the women’s race, setting a new world record at 2:09:56 during the Chicago Marathon at Grant Park.
July 17, 2025

Kenyan Whose Record Shocked Running World Suspended for Drugs

Her drug test showed levels 190 times above the allowed amount.
Collins
July 17, 2025

NFL Second-Round Impasse May End As Niners Give Pick $9M Guaranteed

The contract isn’t fully guaranteed like the earlier second-rounder deals.
Caitlin Clark
July 17, 2025

Caitlin Clark Out for WNBA All-Star Game, 3-Point Contest With Injury

Clark and Satou Sabally will miss the game with injuries.
Apr 8, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal (3) reacts during the first half against the Golden State Warriors at Footprint Center.
July 16, 2025

Bradley Beal Agrees to Suns Buyout, Will Join Clippers

Beal is the latest star player to leave Phoenix behind Kevin Durant.