The Agent: My 40-Year Career Making Deals and Changing the Game

This reader was hoping that this book would tell the inside story of the Jerry Maguire-type sports agent. How did he negotiate big buck deals and how did he win clients like Dusty Baker, Oscar de la Hoya, Troy Aikman, Steve Young, Warren Moon, and Ben Roethlisberger? It seems that he parlayed a fraternity buddy into the NFL by pure luck, creativity and chutzpah, and thus he became a negotiating guru. Over a thirty year career, Steinberg represented over one-hundred and fifty professional athletes. Steinberg was born with a silver spoon and raised with celebrity. His grandfather owned Los Angeles’ Hillcrest Country Club. Unlike the Jerry Maguire movie, Steinberg did not have to struggle for success. It is difficult to know how honest he is about his own life. He claims many accomplishments such as taking a stand against sports concussions in 1989, teaching lame leading actors how to throw a football and making correct Oscar predictions. The most interesting part of the book is how Steinberg doesn’t continually tell how great he is, but how his struggles with alcohol cost him everything.