A group of NFL player agents has reached out to the NFLPA, asking for a formal discussion about the new 1.5% default agent fee. "The union has been contacted by a group of agents who are interested in serving as a representative body for agents to discuss their fees," said NFLPA Assistant Exec Dir of External Affairs George Atallah. "They reached out to us about this recently and we have heard that they want to engage with us in a more formal way." The NFLPA informed the agents in September that the union's board of player reps had voted in March to keep the maximum agent fee at 3% but make a first-ever "default fee" of 1.5%. The union sent out the new standard representation agreement on Oct. 31. Atallah said that some NFL agents called the union, but he did not name the agents or the union official or officials with whom they spoke. "We know our CARD committee will be more than happy to hear what they have to say about the fee structure," Atallah said, referring to the union's Committee on Agent Regulation & Discipline. Attempts to ascertain the names of the agents and the union officials were unsuccessful. Sources have told the DAILY for months that large numbers of agents have been meeting and talking about what to do about what they see as downward pressure on fees and a threat to their livelihoods. The NFLPA's 3% maximum fee is the lowest in the four major sports leagues.
