If Roc Nation Sports was worried their slew of bad publicity would prevent athletes from signing, there seems to be no issue. While Jay-Z's newest venture into sport seems to be creating headlines and controversy, athletes are certainly not afraid to consider jumping in with the agency. While Roc Nation Sports already represents the likes of Geno Smith, Victor Cruz, Robinson Cano and Skylar Diggins, the latest athlete to consider the agency is Philadelphia Eagles' wide receiver DeSean Jackson.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Jackson has ended his relationship with Drew Rosenhaus and is considering signing with Jay-Z's firm. Jackson has been vocal about his desire to have a music career along with football and that has played a large role in being attracted to Roc Nation. Jackson once told Yahoo! Sports that hip hop has always been a large inspiration and passion of his. He knows making it into the music industry is slim, but he believes in giving it a chance. Jackson currently owns his own label, Jaccpot Records.
Now that Jackson has left Rosenhaus, he must wait five days before singing with a new agent, per NFLPA rules. Rosenhaus could certainly try and persuade Jackson to stay during those five days, but the receiver is more than likely going to jump ship over to Jay-Z.
If Jackson truly wants to get into music, he could simply hire Jay-Z to handle all matters outside football and then sign with the CAA to deal with his NFL career. Cruz took the same path. As the NFLPA continues to investigate Roc Nation Sports and Jay-Z's involvement with signing Smith, in could be easier for Jackson to just let the agency handle his budding music career.
Jay-Z and Roc Nation Sports have an in-house NFLPA-certified agent with Kim Miale. Since Jay-Z is not a certified agent, she is reportedly the one representing Smith and not the rapper specifically. Jackson could reach out to Miale and sign with the firm through her. This would eliminate any speculation that Jay-Z was involved in the recruiting of Jackson.
The firing of Rosenhaus is the second time that Jackson has switched agencies during his NFL career. Rosenhaus was responsible for getting Jackson a five-year, $51 million contract extension with the Eagles back in 2012.
