NFL Cardinals CB Patrick Peterson is "becoming a face of national companies, whether it's wearing their shoes or appearing on billboards or in commercials," according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com. He "already has endorsement deals" with Nike, Pepsi, Eastbay, Tide, T-Mobile, Express, GoPro, Mars and GMC. He "has long-term deals with Nike and Eastbay and some one-time agreements or social media hits." Peterson: "Watching Allen Iverson -- he’s even a Reebok guy -- watching Kobe Bryant when he was with adidas, watching those guys, I was like that’s something I want to do if I was able and fortunate enough to make it to the next level to have a strong company like one of those companies backing me up and saying this guy reps our company and he wears it with great pride and dignity. And once I actually figured out how the sponsorships work and how endorsements actually work, I said this is definitely something I can get acquainted with pretty quick." Weinfuss noted Peterson is "well-known to NFL insiders and fanatics," but when it comes to the "general fan base, Peterson isn't yet a household name." Part of that relative anonymity is that he "plays for the Cardinals" and another part is "his quiet personality." Peterson "isn’t drawing attention to himself" like Seahawks CB Richard Sherman, which "could be good and bad when it comes to landing endorsements." Another one of Peterson’s "battles to become a major endorser is the fact that he plays defense." When a potential endorser looks at the Cardinals, it is "easy to see" why WR Larry Fitzgerald is "their first choice." EAG Sports Management CEO Denise White, whose company handles some PR and marketing for Peterson, said that Peterson has "used the opportunity to learn from Fitzgerald about how to land major deals and how to handle himself in the spotlight" (ESPN.com, 7/8).
SHERMAN'S MARCH: Sherman and his mother, Beverly, appeared live in-studio on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" to promote their new partnership with Campbell's Soup as part of the company's "Mama's Boy" campaign. Beverly also had a Campbell's Soup can purse, with MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski noting "I want to be a Campbell's Soup mom." Beverly said she was "officially a soup mom." Brzezinski said those "commercials are hysterical" ("Morning Joe," MSNBC, 7/10). Meanwhile, in Portland, Allan Brettman noted Nike on Tuesday "introduced its first-ever football cleat to use" Flyknit, the brand's "single-stitch upper technology." The event featured Sherman, who "talked about testing the football shoe." The event also "coincided with Nike's annual 'The Opening' event at which the nation's elite high school football players participate." Nike Cleated Footwear Design Dir Ken Link said that Sherman was "one of the Nike-sponsored professional athletes who've tested the Nike Vapor Carbon 2014 Elite." A "select number" of D-I college football teams, including the Univ. of Oregon, also "have tested the shoe" (OREGONIAN.com, 7/8).
