Tough Financial Lessons Terrell Davis Learned: How an Adviser Was ‘Making a Lot of Money’ While He Was Spread ‘Thin’

When Terrell Davis entered the NFL, financial literacy wasn’t part of the onboarding process. His first NFL contract with the Denver Broncos was a modest three-year deal after being selected in the sixth round of the 1995 draft. Photo via Instagram @therealterrelldavis Lessons Learned It included a $38,000 signing bonus and a rookie salary of $119,000, according to Spotrac. Despite these humble beginnings, Davis quickly became a standout player, which led to the Broncos renegotiating his contract after his stellar rookie season, ultimately signing him to a five-year, $6.8 million deal with a $1 million signing bonus in 1996. Like many players, he had to navigate finances on his own, and initially, he made a common mistake — trusting an adviser referred to him through another contact and not vetting the money contact on his own. After figuring out that some of the decisions being made on his behalf benefitted the adviser and not his portfolio, he restructured his team and is now in more control. “I did what everybody else did, right? I found a financial adviser, and I thought things were good,” Davis recalled in an exclusive interview with AfroTech. & “He wasn’t a bad advisor, he didn’t...