Patrick Peterson fires agent ahead of contract negotiation

Patrick Peterson fired his agent ahead of a big contract extension negotiation, and the agent is fuming because he believes his former client was improperly poached.

Peterson, who was the No. 5 overall pick in the NFL draft in 2011 by the Arizona Cardinals, will likely begin talks with the team in a few months about a contract extension that could make him the highest-paid defensive player in the league. He fired agent Patrick Lawlor on Monday night, and Lawlor believes the new agency enticed Peterson by promising financial incentives.

“Do I believe whoever signs [Peterson] offered him a financial inducement to sign him? Yes,” Lawlor said, via Yahoo! Sports. “Only time will tell. But that has been the trend that has been going on where these agents have been stealing clients from other agents by offering them ‘marketing guarantees.’ It’s completely preposterous. It’s gotten out of hand but the NFLPA totally disregards it. They don’t see it as some type of inducement when it absolutely is. They say in their rules and regulations that you can’t provide compensation to players to lure them in as clients, and yet it happens all the time.”

Lawlor says he plans to file a complaint with the union over the situation. He says he considers himself a “little guy” in the industry who can’t compete with that.

“A little guy like me can’t compete with these large agencies who are putting these massive marketing guarantees out there. It’s a hidden little rule and it’s disgusting.”

He’s probably right. His website shows that he has 13 clients, and the only really notable ones he has are Peterson and Peterson’s close friend and teammate, Tyrann Mathieu. If he loses Peterson before the big payday, that will be extremely damaging to his business. It’s no wonder why he’s fuming.