FLOWERY BRANCH – Eugene Parker, the legendary sports agent who help usher Deion Sanders out of town back in the 1990s, passed away on Thursday.
His family said in a statement than he had cancer.
Parker, a former basketball player at Purdue and an attorney, was a well-respected agent to some of NFL’s top stars over the past three decades. His firm, Relativity Sports, represents some of the NFL’s top players.
Back in Sept. of 1994, when Sanders left to sign with the San Francisco 49ers, the Falcons were ticked. They thought Parker would give them a chance to match, but realized that Sanders took less money and probably just wanted to bolt town.
In an Atlanta Journal-Constitution article by Len Pasquarelli, Falcons team president Taylor Smith said the Falcons were not granted the chance to match the 49ers’ offer. Said Parker: “They had their chance.”
In addition to Sanders, Parker, who worked out of Fort Wayne, Ind., represented Hall of Famers Emmitt Smith, Rod Woodson, Walter Jones and Curtis Martin.
Active players represented by his firm includes Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald, Jacksonville’s Allen Robinson, Chicago’s Alshon Jeffery, Carolina’s Kelvin Benjamin and Buffalo’s Sammy Watkins.
After his basketball career at Purdue, Parker was selected in the fifth round by the San Antonio Spurs in the 1978 NBA draft. He didn’t signed with the Spurs and became a graduate assistant at Valparaiso University, where he went on to earn his juris doctorate in 1982.
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