Devon Kennard has spent nearly a decade in the NFL, but he’s always known the big paydays won’t last forever.
That mindset has helped the veteran outside linebacker keep an eye on the future, building a real estate empire in the midst of his successful pro career.
Kennard is now hoping to pass along his knowledge to other athletes, especially those who may come from impoverished backgrounds where financial advice was sparse. He recently wrote a book called ‘It All Adds Up’ which is available for pre-order.
Have you guys preordered my book It All Adds Up — Designing your game plan for financial success yet?
Will be officially released next month and YOU can be one of the first ones to have a copy!
Click link in bio! pic.twitter.com/XDbMoSUCHB
— DK (@DevonKennard) March 17, 2023
Kennard spoke exclusively with Compare.bet about the financial side of life for an NFL player.
Kyle Odegard: When did it pop into your head to write a book, and what’s it like to be able to get it published?
Devon Kennard: Man, it was a journey. I always knew I wanted to write a book, but I didn’t know fully what I was getting myself into. You get into the thick of the process, and there’s definitely a lot to it. It’s a lot of effort. But I’m really proud of the book I put together, and it’s about something I’m really passionate about. Being a professional athlete and second-generation one at that (Editor’s note: Kennard’s father, Derek, played 11 seasons in the NFL for the Cardinals, Saints and Cowboys) I was so passionate about guys going broke and the best things to do to make sure that’s not the case.
Very excited to have both Derek Kennard Sr. (1981-83, Union) and Derek Kennard Jr. (2000-03, DL) as our honorary captains for tonight's game!#BattleBorn // #NevadaGrit pic.twitter.com/XDRJo0sTJ0
— Nevada Football (@NevadaFootball) October 13, 2018
I saw my dad mostly after his NFL career, so it made me realize that there is a lot of life on the other side. How do you make sure you’re living the rest of your life how you want to? That thought spurred my interest in financial literacy. The American dream as we’re taught it is really not working for so many Americans, and I feel like I can reach a certain demographic, because there are not a lot of people that look like me and have the track record I have, talking about financial literacy the way that I am, and talking about real estate the way that I am. It was kind of like, ‘Why not me, and why not now?’
KO: I’d imagine you try to chat with teammates about this in the locker room. What’s the response like? Can you get through to guys, or is it hard because they just got a big signing bonus at 22 years old?
DK: It’s evolving and changing a ton, which is a really good thing. I think people are talking more about financial literacy than ever before in the NFL, but there’s still so much people don’t understand, don’t know and aren’t doing, because they don’t know where to start. So it’s desensitizing that and providing a sounding board. The NFL and NFLPA brings me on to do a lot of panels and talk to young players, and even veterans that have a strong interest in real estate, specifically.
It’s been good and it’s been fun having those kind of opportunities, because guys don’t know where to start. There are so many books on it, but not a lot of people have our background and can talk about things in a way that we can relate to. Like you can read a book about a person who started out with no money and bought a house. That’s not our situation. We’re in the NFL making money, so what do we do with it? How do we leverage this money now so we’re benefiting from it 10, 15, 20 years down the line? It’s not, ‘How do we build wealth?’ We’ve built wealth through the NFL.
Would you rather play 6 years or less in NFL with 20M+ in gross revenue or 12+ years but 8M in gross revenue?
— DK (@DevonKennard) March 17, 2023
KO: Is there an example of a player gravitating to that message, something that made you proud to see the way they latched onto it?
DK: I’m careful revealing that because I want guys to feel comfortable coming to me. But, yeah, I used to be scared to come out and speak publicly about real estate and financial freedom, and if you follow my socials, that’s what I talk about a lot. You’d be surprised at the caliber of players and the amount of players that hit me up in the DMs or get my number through mutual friends and reach out. They say, ‘Man, I really appreciate what you’re doing’ and that’s really encouraging, because guys are taking notice and finding value in it. I try to help whoever wants it and in whatever capacity. And I think it’s important that I create a narrative where I’m not out here saying I’m a guru who knows it all. One thing I found interesting is that so many experts wait until they’ve got life all figured out, in investing or real estate, whatever. They’re 50 and they’re saying how they did it. I’m 31 and still figuring this thing out, while I’m still playing. I think there’s value in that. I don’t have all the answers, but I’m really in the trenches right now figuring things out and asking the right questions. Guys value that.
I believe athletes should put 50-100% down on their primary home while they are playing!
Here’s why:
1. Capital isn’t an issue, while you are playing you have plenty of capital coming in so using a portion of signing bonus to pay down your house shouldn’t be an issue
— DK (@DevonKennard) March 9, 2023
KO: Do you think social media and the ease of the internet has helped? You said that earlier in your career guys weren’t as receptive. Why do you think it’s changed, and are you hopeful more and more people will think about long-term financial stability?
DK: It is wild where the league is going, amongst all sports. Business is something a lot of people are interested in talking about. But there’s still a long way to go, for sure. The next step is getting more and more players in line. We see the star athletes align with brands, and that’s become the norm. I think every player needs to have that mind-set. There is this whole notion that we’re supposed to just be concentrating on our sport, though the teams have to accept the star players’ (business interests). Patrick Mahomes is invested in an MLS team. LeBron James has Lobos Tequila, and all these different teams. The guys who may not be the stars on the team need to be diversifying and finding opportunities as well. It’s ironic that the guys making the most money are doing that. Those are the guys that need it the least.
Great finally meeting in person bro! https://t.co/ZCQe63q2dU
— DK (@DevonKennard) February 17, 2023
KO: When players get to the end of their careers, they are concerned about what they’re going to do, knowing that football was their passion and life for so long. How much of a factor is the financial aspect, where they’ve had these sizable checks rolling in, but when they’re done, it stops in a hurry? How much of it is them realizing they need a plan to sustain their finances after they’re done playing?
DK: I think guys figure that out later in their career. The earlier you start, it’s the compound effect. You start making wise decisions really on, it will trickle down to later in your career. The earlier you start, the better. But even the old guys that maybe made a lot of mistakes and are figuring it out now, a big thing is: Now is better than later. The best day to figure it out is today. Making those little steps to move in the right direction, I talk about that a lot in ‘It All Adds Up.’ It’s not just the big things. You’ve got to move down the field methodically, and sometimes you just need to get the first down.
KO: You mentioned your dad, and I’m wondering how you gained this perspective. Did he make mistakes financially early, or did he do a good job from the start for you to follow?
DK: I don’t think my dad made any huge mistakes, at least none that I know of. It was more like, ‘Dang, my dad had a 13-year NFL career, and he finished when I was four or five years old.’ It was the realization of, ‘Man, he’s been out of the league 25 years. There’s so much life after it. I was recognizing that growing up. He’s not in the NFL any more. I’m looking back at what he did, but he’s living life outside of that now. And what do I want that to look like? He had the most ideal situation you can have. Played 13 years, won a Super Bowl, played on great teams, and he’s still figuring out life outside of ball. So it was making myself realize, what are the things I’m going to want to do? What do I want my life to look like?
When you’re asking yourself those questions, you realize you want your football money to last a long time. You make a ton of money, and then we have no income coming in once we retire. You can make a ton of money, but if your expenses are crazy high and you have no money coming in, you are spending down your principle more and more every month. You make these millions, but if every month you’re spending, $20-, $30-, $40-, $50,000 with no real income, you’re going to start becoming uncomfortable. Depending on how much money you made, it might determine how many years it takes for you to start feeling uncomfortable, but there is no question you will one day if you’re spending that amount of money without anything coming in. So why not set things up where you have supplemental income by the time you retire? You can sustain your lifestyle without spending your principle. That concept is huge for players to get to that point.
