Just a couple minutes into a conversation with Ed Wasielewski, and he’s apologizing because one of his clients is texting him from NFL training camp. The player is injured, and he’s updating Wasielewski on his status. After a brief pause, Ed picks right back where he left off, discussing how his show The Agent, which premieres Aug. 11 at 10 p.m. ET on the Esquire Network, came together.
“This is how this world works,” Wasielewski says. “I have three players dealing with injuries right now, so it’s a little bit of a nightmare.”
Wasielewski represents 24 active players at EMG Sports, a company he founded himself after he started to build his roster. And he maintains a very similar approach to each and every client. Ed self-proclaims his company to be a boutique sports agency. Maintaining that demands a personal touch that ranges from helping players with their trusts and wills or putting together a prenuptial agreement to assisting them with cover letters and résumés once their playing days are over.
From his first client in 2005, Virginia product Jermaine Hardy, up through higher profile draft picks like Denver Broncos 2014 second-round pick Cody Latimer and Ibraheim Campbell, a fourth-round selection out of Northwestern by the Cleveland Browns in this year’s draft, Wasielewski focuses on the little things. Obviously money dominates the sports agency scene, and negotiating a contract is a big part of that, but a relationship between a player and an agent is just that – a relationship. Especially with guys coming out of college, this is their first experience in the real world, and there’s a lot of money at stake in a profession filled with risk.
These are 20-somethings who can easily be steered the wrong way, so it’s important to establish a connection and a level of trust with an agent, the same way people build a rapport with their doctors or their vets or the person who cuts their hair on a regular basis.
“I feel like Ed is real,” Atlanta Falcons linebacker Nate Stupar says. “There’s no bull crap. He doesn’t beat around the bush and isn’t afraid to get things done. He’s strong willed and I think some agents don’t really care about their players. They are just meat to them. They don’t get to know them and see them as salary and not as a person.”
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Stupar has been with Ed since he left Penn State in 2012 and was ultimately a seventh-round selection by the Oakland Raiders. He tells a story about how he had a tough time with the Jacksonville Jaguars during camp in 2014, and Wasielewski flew down to visit with Stupar, his wife and his father. Ed gave Nate advice and helped him refocus and stay committed. So while Stupar was one of the last players cut despite leading the team in tackles during the preseason, he ultimately ended up on the Falcons, where he made the final roster.
“Ed treats you as a friend and doesn’t stop there,” Stupar says. “He truly gets to know you and the people around you. This is his life. He eats, sleeps and breaths football. I hear stories about how sometimes players can’t get a hold of their agent for days on end. Ed isn’t that type of man and his wife, Erin, can testify to that. Anytime I need to contact or reach him. He’s always a phone call away with no doubt in my mind he will answer or call back ASAP.”
And that is something Ed’s wife could attest to. Wasielewski recently celebrated his honeymoon in Italy, and he was still getting texts from his clients. He’d sneak away into the bathroom to answer to avoid catching flack from Erin, and at other times throughout the day, when he’d have a little extra time, he’d make sure his guys were okay.
“Unless your agent is genuinely interested in you as a player and as a person,” Wasielewski says, “then your agent is not really working for you in all aspects of your career. Money is just a part of it. It’s not the only thing. It has nothing to do with a big contract. It’s about being connected to that players and showing I do care about him. You can talk about it, but actions speak louder than words.”
Those actions could be anything from giving hard criticism or telling it like it is to a player who doesn’t necessarily want to hear that. Or it could be making a financial investment in a player’s future through hiring a trainer, housing that player in Arizona or Florida and paying for meals and physical therapy. For Ed, the hope is that investment pays off down the road, but it’s also a commitment to going that extra step to make sure his clients feel comfortable.
People have this idea of what agents do and what their lives are like. It’s inspired by whatever pop culture realm you want to use. It’s probably the ‘90s fault, whether it be Jerry Maguire or even Arli$$. But when you get down to it, the majority of agents are out there working really hard, they have families, they’re just trying to run their business and make sure they do the best for who they’re representing.
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It’s important to be true to life so people can see that and they’re not just seeing the surface level or the glamour. These players matter too, and these agents matter. The league can’t be the league if it’s not made up of those players and those individuals working as hard as they are.
That’s the approach Wasielewski and producer Amani Martin took when they formulated the idea for the show in the first place. The two kicked around ideas when Martin was working on ESPN’s Broke, a “30 for 30” film that debuted in 2012. Martin wanted Ed to contribute, but Ed didn’t see it as a good fit at the time. As they continued talking, they decided to explore the world of athletes through being around an agent and his players.
Wasielewski was holding a client appreciation outing in New York City and had Martin and a crew tag along to film some footage as Ed and his players spoke with business folks, accountants, financial advisers and some clothing reps. This turned into a short sizzle reel, and they started pitching to various networks. While there wasn’t a ton of interest at the onset, more agents came aboard, and conversations started to make progress out in Los Angeles with production companies. A couple networks were intrigued, but Esquire felt like the best fit with its male-based programming.
“The big thing for me is this is something I feel ownership in,” Wasielewski says. “There’s no acting involved. I’m just going to be myself. Because I feel so invested in this project, I want it to be as authentic as possible. I want this to be a true documentary. I’ve seen documentaries like Hoop Dreams. Now that was authentic. All I can control is what I put out there. Everything they’re recording is fair game. They’re going to show the good, the bad, and the ugly.”
In large part, the show is a celebration of a journey Wasielewski has been on since he got his first internship in sports almost two decades ago. He’s far afield of when he was in the press box with the Washington Capitals armed only with a phone book, a phone, a pen, and a legal pad asked to try and drum up season ticket sales right out of undergrad.
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Wasielewski’s hope is that the show can peel back the onion to see the different layers that make up an agent’s life and show what their day to day is really like. He even installed a camera on his desk – what he calls Agent Ed Cam – so he could film phone calls with college players or his clients whenever he thought the producers would want something captured.
It’s an opportunity to set the record straight about what agents really do. People may see Ballers or read about Dan Fegan or Scott Boras and conjure up a composite image of Sports Agent, but the truth is, for many of these guys, they’re just advocates for their players.
“It’s not all glamorous and sexy,” Wasielewski says, “I’m a blue-collar agent. I was never handed anything. Nobody gave me my first client. Peyton Manning is not my cousin. Tom Brady is not a friend. I went out and cold called a lot of these players. Just building up my business step by step by step. I think this show is going to do a good job of showing what an agent’s life is all about.”
