Arbitrator rules DeSean Jackson owes over $500K to his former agent Drew Rosenhaus
Washington Redskins wide receiver DeSean Jackson owes his former agent Drew Rosenhaus $516,415 in unpaid loans and agent fees, according to a decision recently issued by NFL Players Association arbitrator Roger Kaplan.
Rosenhaus had alleged that Jackson owed him $777,793 for loans, interest charges, credit card charges, insurance premiums and agent fees that began to accrue the night Jackson hired Rosenhaus in November 2009 and continued through the time Jackson fired Rosenhaus in March 2012.
Jackson's attorney says they plan to appeal the decision in federal court.
Jackson attempted to avoid paying the money Rosenhaus said he owed him on the basis that Rosenhaus had violated NFLPA regulations on agents offering players inducements to sign, but the NFLPA found that Rosenhaus had not induced Jackson to sign his standard representation agreement.
The agreement between Rosenhaus and Jackson called for the wide receiver to receive $375,000: $50,000 cash and a $90,000 check upon signing in 2009, with the remaining $235,000 to be paid to Jackson in installments over a period of 24 months.
The agreement Rosenhaus and Jackson signed stated that $175,000 of that $375,000 would be forgiven if Jackson allowed Rosenhaus to negotiate his next contract. If Jackson had fired him, he'd have to pay back the full $375,000 with interest (7 percent).
Jackson ultimately allowed Rosenhaus to negotiate that five-year deal with the Eagles in 2012 that had a potential reported value of $48.5 million. Jackson was released by the Eagles after earning $17,750,000 of that money.
Jackson had raised questions about the fairness of the NFLPA's arbitration procedures in the past, after the union and Kaplan failed to inform the receiver that Kaplan was receiving money from Rosenhaus to serve as an arbitrator in an unrelated dispute between the agent and a former employee at the same time he was hearing the grievance between Rosenhaus and Jackson. Jackson alleged that financial relationship and a lack of disclosure gave rise to the appearance of bias.
Jackson could not be reached for comment. A call, text and email to the NFLPA was not returned.
