At the end of February, cornerback Nate Jones had the opportunity to shadow employees at the NFL office in New York. Throughout the day, he moved through Digital Media, Corporate Development, Finance, Communications, and Player Engagement. Jones shared his experiences, the lessons he learned about the various responsibilities of the League office, and why he feels other players should seek out shadowing opportunities.
PE: How did this shadowing opportunity arise?
Jones: Just kind of being persistent. Mainly Troy [Vincent, Senior Vice President of Player Engagement] had a big part. I knew him personally from playing and he’s a Jersey guy, but just being persistent on it. I said, “I want to get up there,” and he said, “Okay, well reach out to this person and keep following up and emailing.” Just that type of process, and it finally happened. That’s kind of how it is. And now, the people I met up there, I have emails, I have contact information and now it’s as easy as an email away for me.
PE: What did you learn about the departments you shadowed?
Jones: Digital Media was an interesting department. It had a lot to do with the new products that the NFL puts out for the viewing experience of the fan and had a lot to do with finance. Just to kind of see those kind of things, like how these products come to life, what makes them go, and how they affect the bottom line with the revenue, made it an interesting department. I also thought the Corporate Development department was interesting. They kind of deal with the stadiums and the relationship between the owners and the League and I liked that department. And also the Finance department. Those three, with my background in college being finance, stuck out to me.
PE: What did you learn about the Player Engagement department specifically?
Jones: Player Engagement is a very important department. They’re responsible for many of the offseason programs, going back to school, Broadcast Boot Camp, and the Coaching Academy. I mean they’ve really done a great job of getting guys out there in things other than football. That’s very, very important. Football doesn’t last forever and to get guys in front of other people and other fields in stuff they like is very, very important. And to just kind of learn how those ideas come about and how they implement those programs and how they open them. They choose the best of the guys to go to these programs like the different Boot Camps and BM&E. It’s definitely an important department and Troy Vincent is doing a great job and everybody respects him and likes what he’s doing there. So again, that department is rolling.
PE: What did you learn about the NFL as a whole?
Jones: The NFL is a pretty lean machine, it’s not a lot of people, but they get a lot of things done with just the right head count. It was good to see how efficient the office is. I learned that it’s a very efficient operation and there are always people on top of things and there’s not a lot of loose fat. Everybody plays a large role, which is kind of how our NFL teams are built. Everybody on the field has a job to do and you do it and that’s your responsibility and it’s all performance based.
PE: How does the NFL office culture compare to that of an NFL playing field?
Jones: When we’re down on the field, we’re practicing and playing on Sundays and just out there against our opponent and everybody has a job to do. Collectively, we just all have to do our job to get the victory at the end of the day. Not many guys that play know exactly what’s going on in the NFL office or who the people are that do all these functions. I mean we know who Roger Goodell is, but we don’t know everybody else. So to get to the office, put faces to names, and kind of understand the role that everybody plays, it was interesting. At the end of the day, it’s all for the love of the NFL and they want to make the NFL work. That’s the goal that everybody in the office has, that’s kind of what I was told and how I saw things. The same type of mission that you have in the office is how we approach our games every week.
PE: Would you recommend this job shadowing program to other NFL players?
Jones: Of course I would recommend it. I would love to expand on it. I was only there for a day. I wish I could do more. It was a great experience just to get my foot in the door and talk to people. It definitely changed my views of the NFL office. It was interesting to finally see it and to hear people say, “This is how we make decisions” and “This is why we did that.” Because a lot of times, we just hear decisions being made and rules being made and these new plans being implemented and we never understand the reason why. To finally talk to people, some executives in these departments that understand what the thought process is and how these things are implemented, it definitely changed my view.
It’s definitely something I think more guys should do. I think the NFL office would love more guys to come up and see and maybe work for them. Basically we’re trying to close this “divide” between the NFL players and the office. But it’s actually not a divide because we’re all in it for the same goal. The more guys that can go up to those offices and say, “Hey look, the NFL really has your back and is really doing things to make this brand special,” I think it will kind of do away with the stigma that players have towards the NFL office. I think that would be great. Again, the more we can get up there, the smaller that divide will get. There are so many other things going on and so many moving pieces that make the brand special and make the brand profitable. The NFL, with as big as it is today, has so many things going on. And like I said, that’s one of the things I learned while I was up there.