Demetric Evans

I think my transition was fairly easy due to the fact that my last year was the lockout year. So, not being able to negotiate or converse with teams distanced me from the organizations and from football.

It gave me time to prepare and create some financial backing for myself. At that time, they were giving us a stipend, so I wasn’t having to spend any of the money I had made. The lockout gave me the opportunity to finish up my undergrad degree.

Having a plan and having some resources stored, to be able to have some transition time and figure out what’s next. Some guys don’t have extra money, or they don’t have a plan – they find themselves in situations where they have to take any job, or they’re spending all of the money that they’ve made.

There comes a point where you don’t have those deposits from the NFL coming in, and if you’re not prepared you’re only making withdrawals and that money starts disappearing fast.

They need to start reaching out to their resources and seeing what is available and what attracts them.

For me it was getting my education. At that time, The Trust wasn’t established, but the NFL was reimbursing guys who made a C or better. So, I had a starting point knowing that I could get my school paid for.

A guy needs to identify his resources and see exactly where he fits in based on his personal needs. You can transition smoothly.

All of these different entities are online, to help people. The Trust has Program Managers and Captains, so right there you have two lines of credibility to help you transition to find out what is next for you. You don’t owe {The Trust} anything, we just want to give you what you have earned!

Playing for the Redskins helped me a lot. The NFLPA office was just down the road, in Washington, D.C., so I spent a lot of time there. When that time came I felt like I could pick up the phone and know who to call. Guys need to know the people at The Trust and the NFLPA offices.

I do the outreach with The Trust and try and help guys understand they don’t have to utilize all of their resources they made as a player.

I also have my own foundation called 92 Blessings. We help single parents with children, with their extracurricular activities. We are partnering with Habitat for Humanity and are going to raise money to build a single mother a home. We also have a golf tournament. I was raised by a single mom, so this cause matters to me.

It’s an opportunity for you to get connected, or even reconnected, to other former players in your area. You can even put faces with the name of your Program Managers.

Once you get past the early stages of retirement, it’s about knowing what’s available to you and who to contact. It is good for guys to get out and hear other people’s transition stories.

Because I saw how beneficial the resources were for me to transition. Guys just have to make their mind up on what they need and enter the process.

It is just one of those things, there may be resources available, but you don’t know where to go, so you get stuck in that cycle of not knowing where to go. I think a lot of times that’s the problem with us, is that we don’t know where to go. That’s why I am so glad that we are starting to meet with guys that are still playing, so guys know their landing spot can be with The Trust when they stop playing.

It lets you understand that you aren’t the only one that is going through a rough time or has been through a rough time.

It is a fellowship and you are getting it from somebody who has walked the same road that you have walked. It’s one thing to hear someone else’s story, but to hear it from a former player who you played with makes it more authentic.

Making a team for 9 years. There is no intern process, guys come from college ready to play. For a guy to play between 4-10 years it is a compliment to them and their hard work.

The NFL is a business. They can keep finding young guys coming out of college who are ready to play, and they are cheaper.

Being better than I was when I was a player, in my personal life, that is. What I mean by that is I don’t walk around with all the stress that the NFL brought. I’m a lot happier, I’m a nicer person.

While you are playing you are always in game mode, everything is serious. Then you go from making a million dollars to trying to find work. Leaving the NFL, I have learned how to relax.