In the realm of NFL finances, where even legends like Warren Sapp faced post-career struggles despite earning millions, the need for financial wellness has never been clearer. With over 78 percent of NFL stars facing potential bankruptcy within five years of retirement, addressing this issue has become a priority for the league. Now, a new champion emerges from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as Carl Nassib steps forward to lead the charge in promoting financial wellness among his peers.
Current Tampa Bay defensive end Carl Nassib just wrapped his NFL Players Association “Externship” experience with Financial Finesse—an early innovator in financial wellness and the firm behind the NFL Players Association’s financial coaching program.
Nassib invested two weeks of his offseason in a financial training camp designed by Financial Finesse to cultivate his interest in personal finance.
It will also ultimately prepare him to design and deliver a Hard Knocks inspired workshop for fellow players.
“We’ve worked with the NFLPA for ten years, and we could not have envisioned a more perfect PSA,” Financial Finesse Founder and CEO Liz Davidson (and Nassib’s newest fan) said in a statement. “You can teach facts and strategy. You can’t teach the passion and curiosity Carl has. When he talks, people listen. So, it’s our job to make sure Carl’s message is on point in hopes of helping him inspire an entire league of financially savvy athletes.”
“The majority of NFL players are considerably more responsible with their finances than the media would have you believe,” said Dana Shuler, Senior Director of Player Affairs at the NFLPA. “We still hear the decade-old soundbite about 78% of players going broke in retirement, when in reality, it is actually the complete opposite.”
Cultural shift
According to Financial Finesse, Nassib’s story “highlights the beginning of a massive cultural shift with a ripple effect that extends beyond professional athletes and into the financial habits and behaviors of everyday Americans.”
The narrative is evolving to highlight the growing trend in players’ humble spending habits including living in a van (by choice), investing 90% of their multi-million-dollar salary, managing to budget and live exclusively on endorsement income, and even teaching financial topics in the classroom at UPenn.
“This is a great performance enhancement benefit the NFLPA offers,” Nassib said. “I’ve had coaches pay for specialists to come in and teach different breathing and sleeping techniques. Anything to gain an edge. Financial stress is real and can be an X-factor on gameday, just like anything else. What Financial Finesse does is proven to work, and it’s free, so why wouldn’t you use it?”
Of the NFL players who participated in a series of 2018 post-workshop surveys, 95% of players reported being better prepared to make a financial decision as a result of the information provided, while 98% considered the financial education services provided by Financial Finesse to be an important part of their total benefits package.
Even more impressive, 48% of players that completed a separate savings survey indicated they are saving 20% or more of their earnings—well above the national average savings rate, which typically hovers around 5%.
Carl Nassib & Liz Davidson Talk Financial Wellness in the NFL from Financial Finesse on Vimeo.
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.