In his rookie year with the Jets, Geno Smith came to the harsh realization that playing in New York isn't easy. When Smith played well, the local media adored him, but when he struggled—and there were plenty of those games—there wasn't a rock big enough for the 23-year-old quarterback to hide under.
From the middle of November to the beginning of December, Gang Green was in the midst of a three-game losing streak and even though fellow Roc Nation Sports client Robinson Cano was nearing a deal that was going to make him one of the wealthiest players in MLB history, Jay Z found the time to hit up Geno on the cell the day before the big signing and offer up some sage advice when it comes to dealing with the pressures of playing in the Big Apple.
“I talk to Jay a lot,” Smith told The Post. “He gave me some good advice. He told me to not take [criticism] personally. It’s not that people don’t like me. It’s not at me. It’s the position that I’m in. Just realize the position that I’m in comes with a lot of scrutiny. You can’t take it personally. You just have to live your daily life.”
As much as people practically hoped to see Jay fail at his sports agency venture, it is becoming increasingly clear that Hov knows what he's doing. While other agents just appear when needed by their client, Jay is taking the time to reach out to Geno to see where his head is at, working on getting the best contract for Cano and making sure to hang out with another one of his clients, Kevin Durant, in action.
He's a different type of agent and someone that future sports stars will probably line up for his services for reasons that go beyond what he did on the mic at this point.
RELATED: The 2013 NFL Starting Quarterback Rankings: From Best to Worst
[via New York Post]
