Hue Jackson won one game in his first season as coach of the Cleveland Browns, but it was enough to perk the interests of Jay Z’s agency Roc Nation Sports, which made Jackson the four-year old firm’s first coaching client.
Despite Jacksons lack of success, locking down a pro coach is huge for the young company, which already has a stable of athletes under its direction such as Golden State Warriors superstar Kevin Durant, Jaguars rookie running back Leonard Fournette, Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant and others.
Jackson follows his agent, John Thornton, to Roc Nation, where he went a year ago after leaving Octagon.
As first reported by ESPNs Darren Rovell, Jackson had been without formal representation for a year, and will now have one of the hippest and most visible agencies in sports supporting him. Jackson, 51, is in the second year of a four-year deal with the Browns that includes an option for a fifth year. He says he also plans to start a foundation soon to help children in Cleveland, and will do so in collaboration with Roc Nation.
With a slew of picks in this years NFL Draft, Cleveland looks to improve quickly. As NFL insider Jeffri Chadiha wrote shortly after the draft:
The Browns are still a long way from being competitive, but they put themselves in a nice position this past weekend. They selected the best player in the draft (DE Myles Garrett), the most versatile defensive back (S Jabrill Peppers) and a tight end with enormous upside (David Njoku) in the first round. They also landed a quarterback of the future in DeShone Kizer. But what puts them over the top is the five additional picks they will have in 2018 as a result of some smart trades. On paper, this franchise is starting to move in the right direction.
With optimism abound and Jackson, one of a handful of African-American coaches in the NFL in position to do something special in Cleveland, its obvious why Roc Nation wants a piece of him before everyone else comes running.
