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Most people negotiate with one billionaire in their lifetime. De Smith negotiated with 31 of them simultaneously.

As CEO of the NFL Players Association for 15 years, the former homicide prosecutor didn't just survive what ESPN called "the toughest job in all of sports." He transformed it, creating over $150 billion in value for players while revolutionizing how we think about athlete safety and life after the game.

In this raw, unfiltered conversation on Awake the Network, De. pulls back the curtain on:

The brutal truth about professional football is that the average career is 3.3 years, the injury rate is 100%, and "you're not a Saint, you're not an Eagle, you're not a Giant, you're an employee."

What it takes to lead in impossible situations. From prosecuting murderers to facing down NFL owners, D. shares the single most important skill he learned in the courtroom.

Why he stopped watching football and what it took to get him back into the game.

QTR (Quality Time Remaining) is the framework that changed how he thinks about every relationship, every decision, every moment.

His new book, Turf Wars, isn't about football. It's a brutally honest examination of power, humanity, and how we choose to treat each other when billions of dollars are at stake.

Listen now to hear how a kid from a long line of Baptist preachers became the voice for thousands of players—and why he believes America is now being run like the NFL.

This podcast is available wherever you listen to podcasts. Book available wherever books are sold, and also check out De's book at turfwarsbook.com

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