NFL Player Vince Young in Financial Crisis and Blames Financial Team

NFL player Vince Young is reportedly in a financial crisis. According to “QB Vince Young out of the game and out of money” on cbsnews.com, “Six years after entering the NFL… Vince Young finds himself without a team and with just a fraction of the money he received from a contract that guaranteed him $26 million.” The article reports that attorneys representing Young, and each of his former financial advisers are arguing over whether Young was irresponsible, his advisers both swindled his money, or if his uncle, one of his advisers, was inexperienced and yet in control of all money decisions.

Vince Young did not give any statements to the article and the exact details of his finances are not stated. The only statement in regards to his current financial status is from his attorney Trey Dolezai: “I would just say that Vince needs a job”.

The financial issues become apparent in the lawsuit between Young and Major Adams, former agent, and Ronnie Peoples, former financial planner. Dolezai sums up the lawsuit as “They conspired to take Vince’s money”.  The lawsuit “[alleges] they misappropriated $5.5 million.” The suit comes after Young was notified of a loan placed in his name that went into default. The loan in question is from Pro Player Funding in the amount of $1.9 million with 20% interest and was signed by Young during the NFL lockout. Young is claiming the funds went to Adams and Peoples and “he didn’t ‘knowingly execute’ any documents… anything he signed was ‘without the corresponding documents attached and without knowledge as to what the signatures pages referred,’ one of his courts filings states.”

Pro Player is also linked to the lawsuit as Young attempts to invalidate the loan although the company claims, “signatures were notarized and that emails show he was involved in making sure the lender received repayment”. Young is also bringing a complaint that Pro Player serving the legal papers at training camp caused Young to be cut from the Buffalo Bills leaving the player without a job.

Ronnie Peoples, former financial player, claims all financial decisions were “approved by Keith Young” and in his countersuit “castigates Young for allowing his uncle to serve as his business manager despite having no expertise in that field”. Keith Young could not be contacted for the article. Major Adams, previous agent, claims funds taken from accounts were used for Young’s benefit.

Haven’t we all heard the phrase “read before signing”? If what Young read made no sense to him, he should have sought an attorney to help translate the documents before signing. To place blame for his job loss on Pro Player, Young must have assumed there would be no consequence for defaulting on a $1.9 million loan. Although, financial issues are not the sole reason a player is cut from a team. If Young did place his uncle as his financial manager knowing his uncle had no experience, the blame is Young’s. I won’t say I don’t feel some sympathy for Young – the issue is Young seemed to hand over control to other people and then played ignorant when problems emerged. Delegating management is not the same as handing over control. A CEO of a privately owned company can hire managers but maintain his/her role and control as CEO. Vince Young hiring a business manager and financial planner did not mean he didn’t have the right scrutinize all decisions and actively maintain control over his money. At the end of the day, the beginning of a transaction, and the placement of his signature, it is always his money.