After the Game: Professions of Former NFL Players

While figures on the professions of former professional athletes are not easy to come by, a 2017 analysis from Linkedin sheds some light on the careers that NFL players choose once their careers in professional sports have ended.

According to the survey that looked at the Linkedin profiles of 3,000 former NFL players, the most popular job choice was being an entrepreneur or working in a small business. 20 percent of surveyed former players said they were doing one of the above on their profiles. Working in sales was almost equally popular, with 18 percent of ex-pros reporting a sales position.

More obvious choices, like coaching/fitness, campus athletics or sports broadcasting were less popular, with in between 3 and 9 percent of former players choosing careers in these sectors. Linkedin also found out that positions in coaching and athletics were more likely to be occupied by recently retired players, while players retired for ten years or longer were more likely to hold jobs at businesses or nonprofits. 31 percent of players who were retired for 20+ years were business founders or owners.