From NFL Stardom to Business Success: My Journey | Kenyan Drake DSH #1118

Summary

Digital Social Hour: From NFL Stardom to Business Success with Kenyan Drake | Episode #1118

Host: Sean Kelly
Guest: Kenyan Drake
Release Date: January 18, 2025

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Introduction

In this compelling episode of Digital Social Hour, host Sean Kelly engages in an in-depth conversation with NFL star Kenyan Drake. The discussion delves into Drake's illustrious eight-year career in professional football, his decision to retire, the challenges within the NFL, the evolving landscape of college football, and his transition into the business world. This episode offers listeners an unfiltered look into the life of a celebrated athlete navigating the complexities of sports and entrepreneurship.

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Retirement from the NFL

Kenyan Drake opens up about his decision to retire from the NFL, highlighting his love for the game contrasted with his aversion to the business aspects of professional football.

• [00:31] "I just, I love the game, I don't love the business. That's why I personally retired."
  Drake explains that his passion for football remained strong, but the relentless pursuit of financial gain and the pressures of the business side led him to step away.

• [01:02] Drake shares a personal milestone: "I actually just had a daughter recently, so that was another decision in me kind of stepping away."
  Becoming a father influenced his choice to prioritize family over the uncertainties of an NFL career.

He further elaborates on the financial instability faced by many NFL players, emphasizing the short average career span and the challenges of sustaining a family on an athlete's earnings.

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Challenges Within the NFL

Drake provides a candid perspective on the competitive and often cutthroat nature of the NFL.

• [01:37] "It's a dog eat dog world. And honestly the mantra is younger and cheaper. So they're always gonna try to replace you in any, you know, form or fashion."
  He discusses the constant pressure to perform and the lack of job security, where even established players are vulnerable to being replaced by younger, more cost-effective talent.

• [03:12] "You have to go out there and handle your business. But understand that the older you get, especially in my position, they're looking to kind of phase you out."
  Drake highlights the necessity of maintaining peak performance to secure one's position within the team.

He also touches upon the physical toll of being a running back, noting the high risk of injuries and the subsequent impact on career longevity.

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Evolving Landscape of College Football

The conversation shifts to the recent changes in college football, particularly the expansion of the playoff system and the introduction of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) agreements.

• [08:45] "And I like how where it is now gives teams more of a chance... so now it's what, 12 teams?"
  Drake expresses approval of the expanded playoff system, believing it offers more opportunities for teams to compete for championships.

• [11:26] "I think it's honestly right that the players are now getting paid, because it's only right. It's fair business."
  He supports the NIL agreements, recognizing the financial benefits for players and the fairness of compensating athletes beyond scholarships.

Drake also discusses the volatility introduced by NIL, referencing specific cases where verbal agreements led to uncertainties for players and programs.

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NFL Predictions for the Season

When asked about his predictions for the upcoming NFL season, Drake shares his insights on potential championship contenders.

• [11:47] "Man, I honestly really like Kansas City still, because Mahomes is, you know, the wild card... their defense is the best in the league."
  He praises Kansas City's star quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the team's formidable defense as key factors for their continued success.

• [12:37] "I think it'll eventually be the Chiefs versus the Lions."
  Drake predicts a showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Detroit Lions, citing the Lions' strong defense and offensive cohesion as critical to their performance.

He emphasizes the unpredictability of football, where each game presents a new challenge, and the importance of week-to-week preparation.

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Transition to Business and Entrepreneurship

Post-retirement, Drake has ventured into the business realm, focusing on creating passive income streams and supporting fellow athletes.

• [14:26] "Me and Taylor Berry, I have, like, a partnership with him and got a lot of guys coming here off season... Got real estate stuff out here as well."
  Drake details his involvement in establishing a gym catering to professional athletes during the off-season and investing in real estate to secure financial stability.

He underscores the importance of diversifying income sources to ensure long-term success beyond his athletic career.

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Connecting with Kenyan Drake

For fans and aspiring entrepreneurs looking to connect with Drake or learn more about his ventures, he provides avenues through various social media platforms.

• [15:01] "So social media, Twitter and Instagram, both kdx32 and yeah, I have a link in as well. You can type my name, man."
  He encourages listeners to reach out via Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn to stay updated on his projects and initiatives.

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Conclusion

In this enriching episode, Kenyan Drake offers a transparent glimpse into the life of an NFL player grappling with the demands of professional sports and the pursuit of personal and financial fulfillment. His insights shed light on the often-overlooked aspects of an athletic career, the evolving dynamics of college sports, and the strategic moves necessary for a successful transition into business. Sean Kelly's adept interviewing brings out Drake's thoughtful reflections, making this episode a valuable resource for athletes, fans, and entrepreneurs alike.

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Notable Quotes:

• "I just, I love the game, I don't love the business. That's why I personally retired." — Kenyan Drake [00:31]
• "It's a dog eat dog world. And honestly the mantra is younger and cheaper." — Kenyan Drake [01:37]
• "I think it's honestly right that the players are now getting paid, because it's only right. It's fair business." — Kenyan Drake [11:26]
• "Man, I honestly really like Kansas City still, because Mahomes is... their defense is the best in the league." — Kenyan Drake [11:47]
• "Me and Taylor Berry, I have, like, a partnership with him and got a lot of guys coming here off season." — Kenyan Drake [14:26]

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This summary encapsulates the essence of the conversation between Sean Kelly and Kenyan Drake, providing a comprehensive overview for those who haven't tuned into the episode.

Transcript

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[Kenyon]

I just, I love the game, I don't love the business. That's why I personally retired. I actually just had a daughter recently, so that was another decision I in me kind of stepping away. I didn't necessarily need to go and chase that check. To get a season accredited, you have to have at least three games, like active. You're on practice squad all year and you don't get active check, that's that season doesn't count. And then if you don't get at least three active games, you don't get that season.

[Interviewer]

All right guys, we got Kenyon here today. Just announced his retirement a few months ago, right?

[Kenyon]

Yes, sir.

[Interviewer]

Congrats on an eight year career.

[Kenyon]

Appreciate you.

[Interviewer]

You were just talking about what the NFL stands for. Not for long dog crazy. Did you know that going into it?

[Kenyon]

Yeah, it's something that's kind of thrown around with, you know, players, coaches, of course, you know, you in the league, you gotta take advantage of the opportunity that you, you know, afforded. But you know, I obviously understand that majority of the people don't really make it that long. And common misconception that it's a lot of money to be made, obviously. But you know, two, three years, man. And you know, it's not really a lot of capital to, you know, have a family can sustain. Especially when you have to go and get another job.

[Interviewer]

So did that pressure ever get to you mentally? Like, damn, I might, if I get injured or something, I might be gone.

[Kenyon]

All the time, man. It's a dog eat dog world. And honestly the mantra is younger and cheaper. So they're always gonna try to replace you in any, you know, form or fashion. And you gotta go out there and perform or don't get paid. You know what I mean? You get replaced.

[Interviewer]

Yeah.

[Kenyon]

So I mean every day you gotta show up to work.

[Interviewer]

Crazy.

[Kenyon]

Yeah.

[Interviewer]

They were trying to cheap out on running backs recently, right?

[Kenyon]

Yeah, man. I mean, look, I'm really happy about what the league looks like now. Obviously, Saquon's doing his thing, my boy Derek doing his thing, and everybody else kind of is like, chasing him in, like, that top back type of conversation right now. Really bringing a lot of love, a lot of, like, accolades back to that position. I feel like, you know, make backs paid again, you know what I mean?

[Interviewer]

Yeah. Cause they took a fat pay cut.

[Kenyon]

Yeah. You know what I mean? That's the market. So how the market goes is, you know, dictates what somebody may get paid. That's any business, you know, and the market was just looking real shady for a minute. But hopefully the performance of these guys going out there, you know, doing their thing, could help get back up.

[Interviewer]

Was it shady because of injuries?

[Kenyon]

Mainly, yeah. Man, backs, do. We do it all, man. We run, obviously, catch the ball at the backfield. Got to protect as well. So that's a lot of wear and tear, you know what I mean? Honestly, if I'm from the other side looking at it, I probably would do the same exact thing, you know, it's a lot of wear and tear on backs year in and year out. The statistics is that backs, after they get a big contract, their production go down. I mean, it just is what it is. So, you know, like I said, I can't honestly be mad at it because it's business. And if I was in that same scenario, I probably would move in the same way, you know, get production for as least as possible.

[Interviewer]

That's cool. You look at it objectively.

[Kenyon]

Yeah. I mean, you have to. I mean, at the end of the day, it's business. I'm in the business of making money. They're in the business of making money. So you have to kind of find a middle ground in terms of you going out there and handling your business. But understand that the older you get, especially in my position, they're looking to kind of phase you out. And you got to go out there and prove it. Which I'm glad that Derek, you know, went from Tennessee and now is in Baltimore and is leading the back or leading backs in general through all these different accolades and stuff like that. So, you know, just hopefully everything can continue to trend up in that direction. Because I want to see backs, obviously.

[Interviewer]

Absolutely. Not a lot of them make it past age 30, I heard.

[Kenyon]

Right. Nah. And it's. You know, and honestly, if you think about sports in general, football is a contact sport, Very contact driven year in and year out, week in and week out. And I mean, just look at any position, like you said, two to three years for any, you know, the average mean, you know, year in terms of how long you stay in the league. So, um, I just, I love the game, I don't love the business. That's why I personally retired.

[Interviewer]

Oh yeah, yeah, you could have kept playing.

[Kenyon]

Yeah, I could have, you know, went and probably got picked up by practice squad teams. You know, I actually just had a daughter recently, probably a year and a half ago now. She's like 16, 17 months now. So that was another decision in me kind of stepping away because I didn't necessarily need to go and chase that check going to practice squads, you know what I mean? Trying to, you know, get. Because what happens is that to get a season accredited you have to have at least three games like active. So if you're on practice squad all year, you don't get active. Check that season doesn't count.

[Interviewer]

Damn.

[Kenyon]

Yeah, exactly.

[Interviewer]

Work, all that.

[Kenyon]

And yeah, you're working, you're getting paid. You still getting paid, you know, practice minimum, but you know, that's not active game check which is, you know, substantial. A little bit more. And then if you don't get at least three active games, you don't get that season.

[Interviewer]

Damn.

[Kenyon]

You know what I mean? So all that went into it, I knew I could probably go and help a team, but in that capacity I was just kind of over it, you know what I mean? I love the game, just don't love the business behind it.

[Interviewer]

Because there's a lot not in your control at that point.

[Kenyon]

Exactly.

[Interviewer]

The coach can choose not to play you, he can play you two games.

[Kenyon]

Practice squad is a chopping block, you know what I mean? So once you get in that scenario and it can not even be your position, it could be a quarterback goes down or a defensive lineman go down. They're starting at the practice squad, right? And you know, me being a 29 at the time last year and 30 year old back now this year at.

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[Kenyon]

You know you're first on the chopping block. It is what it is. So I respect it.

[Interviewer]

Absolutely. Two titles at Bama. Which one felt more fulfilling for you?

[Kenyon]

Oh man, definitely. Probably the second one my senior year to be able to kind of live up to the legacy that was set before us. When I was a freshman, that was the first one I won and then obviously years prior to that, you know, with the motivation for me going there because they were setting the standard. So they won in like 09. I think they back went repeated 11 and my freshman year so we kind of came like close. Had to kick six against Auburn, ran into a bus All Oklahoma after that and then lost to Ohio State that first playoff season. So we were always a game out, never could get to it. And that's, you know, college football is what it is. But my senior year, just having the ability to be like, hey, this is the platform we're setting, the standard we're setting. You see guys like TUA show up after that, Devonta Smith, all the guys on defense that kind of came, you know, after, you know, all the great guys that we had beforehand. And you know, I love seeing that success kind of play out year after year.

[Interviewer]

Did you like when they implemented that playoff system?

[Kenyon]

I did. And I like how where it is now gives teams more of a chance. Now it's, you know, we always want more. Right. You give a, you know, give in, people take a mile. So now it's what, 12 teams?

[Interviewer]

It's 12 teams now.

[Kenyon]

Is it 12 or.

[Interviewer]

I haven't been keeping up. I thought it was four.

[Kenyon]

Oh. So what happened is that this year is the first year they brought it to 12. Oh, wow. Yeah. So initially it was four teams were kind of like on that fringe, like, hey, we are, you know, a mid major team or like a, not a, not a power forward team. We have a great team. We want, we deserve to be in. Which I respect it, like a Boise State this year or you know, even Colorado is a Big 12 championship contender going against TCU eventually. Yeah. So all I can say is I think it's a great thing for college football. A lot of money's coming in. The players are getting paid now, which I love. It's a wild, wild west though. Like it's crazy just how it can be a one year free agency nowadays. Yeah, it's nuts with players literally going from. And it didn't have to even be a scenario where you could be honestly telling the truth. You could kind of just tell them, hey, I'm a five star. I didn't get really to get to play this year. You know, Florida's offering me this. It could be a complete lie, but, but that team could be like, well, we don't want to lose this guy. Let's, you know, give him what he want. But then at the same time, it could be the opposite in a sense to where what happened with the UNLV quarterback this year. And you know, you don't make a non binding agreement, put something in writing so somebody can actually honor that. And now guess what happened. Now he's, you know, talking about he's, you know, going to take the red shirt this Year and not play anymore because of a agreement that he thought he had but didn't put in it. Right.

[Interviewer]

Damn.

[Kenyon]

You know what I mean?

[Interviewer]

I didn't know about that. UNLV's decent this year.

[Kenyon]

Yeah, exactly. So they had a quarterback initially that was leading the charge, I think had him, like, undefeated. And he kind of had a situation to where he was like, man, you know, I have this nil money that was promising me, like, where is it? And the school was like, we can't honor that. Like, we didn't say that. Like, he was promised by, you know, some coach or whatever the situation is. So in that regard, you know, he decided to, you know, stop playing. Yeah. Just register this year. Damn. And then another quarterback came in and still continued to success. So I'm glad the program didn't really falter from that. But that's the inverse of those two scenarios where you can benefit from a player but also not benefit.

[Interviewer]

The players have more power now, right?

[Kenyon]

Yeah, no, definitely compared to what it was back then. But like I said, there's no regulation in it, so, like, anything can kind of really happen. You know, promise can be made and not fulfilled or whatever the case may be. It just is what it is.

[Interviewer]

I mean, nil money. I mean, University of Colorado, those kids are making crazy money, right?

[Kenyon]

Yeah. Shoot. Really? All over. I mean, shoot. I know I could have made some crazy money if I was playing. You know what I mean?

[Interviewer]

Alabama. Yeah. Those guys are probably killing it.

[Kenyon]

Yeah, I mean, I love it for them dudes, man. Like the fact that, you know, NCAA in general could make money off of a product that they weren't paying. I mean, they made billions, you know what I mean? And so I think it's honestly right that the players are now getting paid, because it's only right. It's fair business.

[Interviewer]

Absolutely. What are your NFL predictions this season? Who do you think is going to win it all?

[Kenyon]

Man, I honestly really like Kansas City still, because Mahomes is, you know, the wild card, obviously, and in terms of, you know, he can do anything in terms of, you know, being a great quarterback. So you always have a chance, a punches chance with Mahomes at quarterback. But their defense is the best in the league and, you know, old saying, defense wins championships. So I honestly expect them to, if they don't, you know, injuries aside, to continue to, you know, be in close games, win close games, have great coaching to make it eventually again. And I also think that if, as long as the Lions don't sustain any more injuries, they already had an injury to Aiden Hutchinson. As long as he doesn't or anybody else sustain a big injury, they have the best team top down. So I think it'll eventually be the Chiefs versus the Lions.

[Interviewer]

You think the Lions will win the nfc?

[Kenyon]

Yeah, I think so. Honestly, like, they have a good defense, their offense clicks on all cylinders, and I feel like that defense makes timely plays. I really do think that division, really both north divisions, the AFC north and the NFC north, are the best divisions in football. So I honestly think it's a toss up of who could eventually come out of that. And that's one thing I love about football compared to, like, basketball or baseball from a playoff standpoint, because you can. The better team most likely always wins in a series of seven, like baseball, basketball, those type of series. But with football, anything can happen on any given Sunday or any given Saturday. The best team doesn't always win because in the scenario of, you know, the quarterback got hurt, you know what I mean? Now they gotta fight to kind of get a backup quarterback to come in or people just making plays, you know, it's just. You never know in a football game, you know what I mean? So it's a season within every week. Every week you're just preparing for another opponent. You gotta scrap this opponent and go to the next. It's not like you play every day, so you never know in the playoffs, but the better teams that have the best defense usually wins, and only any sport.

[Interviewer]

Do you think the NFL should change to series in the playoffs? Like, best two out of three?

[Kenyon]

Nah, that's a lot. Like, they're already trying to freaking bring the games up to like 20 games or some. Some shit like that.

[Interviewer]

Oh, they're trying to raise it.

[Kenyon]

Yeah, like, they've been discussing it and whenever, like, the. The public gets wind of it, I mean, it's probably already been in the works, you know what I mean? So the more games that they have, the more money the NFL makes. And why would they not make the most money they can, even to the detriment of the, you know, what's paying them the money? Because, I mean, playing 18 games in a season, plus playoffs, plus preseason, that's a lot of games.

[Interviewer]

That is a lot of wear and tear, dude. What are you working on next? I know you got a gym out here.

[Kenyon]

Yeah, man. Me and Taylor Berry, I have, like, a partnership with him and got a lot of guys coming here off season, man, you know, so if you're looking for a gym to kind of come into, don't know, you know your target audience, but you know, shameless plug. Got a gym out here, pro athletes that can come and do the off season, training, things of that sort. Really on up and up. Got real estate stuff out here as well. So just really trying to make as much passive money as possible.

[Interviewer]

Oh, yeah, that's the name of the game.

[Kenyon]

Yeah. Come on, man.

[Interviewer]

Love it. Where can people find you?

[Kenyon]

So social media, Twitter and Instagram, both kdx32 and yeah, I have a link in as well. You can type my name, man.

[Interviewer]

LinkedIn.

[Kenyon]

LinkedIn, yeah.

[Interviewer]

I've never had a guest shout out, LinkedIn, let's go.

[Kenyon]

You know, business savvy, you know what I mean? So, you know, all love any type of platform. However you, you know, do it, you.

[Interviewer]

Know, give me a shout, let's go. I use LinkedIn, so I'm just surprised. All right, check them out on LinkedIn, guys. Peace.

[Kenyon]

Foreign.

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[Kenyon]

Qualify.

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