NFL Players' Podcast

Riccardo Stewart once flew to Rome for a 30-minute Q&A with the Pope and had to work out what to ask. Most players feel the same way across the table from a financial advisor: they know they need one, but not what to ask. In this episode, Riccardo, Sam Acho, Jeff Locke and Zach Miller lay out the questions every player should ask before hiring or switching advisors, and why each one matters. Sam explains what it means to be a fiduciary and why some advisors wear two hats. Jeff breaks down the difference between a license and a certification. Riccardo uses a 53-man roster to explain asset allocation. And Zach shares the question that hurt him personally, "Will you give me my after-tax returns?", plus why your advisor should be able to vet the deals that come through the locker room and advise on your NFL benefits.

Connect with Us
• Call or text us: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/?utm_source=awm-capital&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep-78-advisor-questions&utm_content=show-notes
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Chapters
00:00 Coming Up: Questions You Should Ask Every Advisor
01:06 What Do You Ask The Pope?
01:58 Are You A Fiduciary? (Sam Acho)
02:43 Fiduciary vs Suitability: The Advisor Who Wears Two Hats
03:25 What Licenses And Certifications Do You Hold? (Jeff Locke)
05:12 How Do You Do Asset Allocation? The 53-Man Roster (Riccardo Stewart)
06:50 What Is Your Investment Philosophy, And How Will Performance Be Measured?
07:13 Will You Give Me My After-Tax Returns? (Zach Miller)
07:51 Closet Indexers, Locker-Room Deals And Your NFL Benefits
09:01 Get Our Advisor Resources: Text 602-989-5022

Every NFL player has made choices that shaped his future: the college he signed with, the team he picked in free agency, the person he married. The 1Hundred Year Family series continues with the choice that decides whether wealth lasts a hundred years: who you hire to manage it. Riccardo Stewart opens with a story from a Mayo Clinic speaker about the "second hour," the extra time that turns a standard checkup into an accurate diagnosis, and what it means for financial advice. Jeff Locke explains the difference between a track home and a custom home when it comes to your investments. Sam Acho breaks down the suitability standard versus the fiduciary standard, and why "fiduciary" comes from the Latin word for trust. Zach Miller asks the question most players never think about: will your advisor still be there for your kids and grandkids? Jeff closes with practical resources to help you choose wisely.

Connect with Us
• Call or text us: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/?utm_source=awm-capital&utm_medium=streaming&utm_campaign=ep-77-choosing-wisely&utm_content=show-notes
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCc1NxpK21N1vKWEExC45YEA
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/

Article to Read
• The Decision Is Hard — Especially When You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know, by Travis Chick, CFP®, CPWA®, AEP®: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/resource/the-decision-is-hard-especially-when-you-dont-know-what-you-dont-know?utm_source=awm-capital&utm_medium=streaming&utm_campaign=ep-77-choosing-wisely&utm_content=show-notes

Chapters
00:00 Welcome: The 1Hundred Year Family And The Choices That Build It
01:17 The Second Hour: What A Mayo Clinic Story Teaches About Advice
03:04 Broker Or Family Office: The Two Choices Most NFL Players Face
03:55 Track Home vs Custom Home (Jeff Locke)
05:55 Suitability vs Fiduciary: Who Is Your Advisor Working For? (Sam Acho)
08:20 Built For 100 Years: Will Your Advisor Outlast Your Career? (Zach Miller)
10:35 Three Resources To Help You Choose Wisely (Jeff Locke)
11:31 Closing: The Decisions We Make Today

The biggest contract of your life is not the number on the headline. Jeff Locke opens with the math on a $132 million deal: $100 million "guaranteed," about $80 million likely to be paid, and roughly $45 million in your pocket after tax and agent fees.

From there, Sam Acho, Zach Miller, Jeff Locke, and host Riccardo Stewart go around the table on what it actually feels like to get paid in the NFL, and what separates the players who get it right from the ones who get it wrong.

On the wrong side: trusting people you don't need to trust, anchoring your spending to the headline number, and never learning the business of the NFL.

On the right side: living simple and staying a ball guy, building a giving plan before the requests come in, thinking like a CEO about who is on your team and how they get paid, and staying educated instead of handing everything off. Three former players, one former coach, no corporate speak.

Connect with Us

• Call or text us: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCc1NxpK21N1vKWEExC45YEA
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/

Chapters
00:00 Cold Open: $132 Million Is Really $45 Million
00:30 Welcome: Getting Paid, Getting It Right vs Getting It Wrong
01:32 Zach Miller: What Signing The Big Deal Actually Feels Like
02:52 Getting It Wrong: Trusting People You Don't Need To (Sam Acho)
04:29 Getting It Wrong: Anchoring Your Spending To The Headline Number (Jeff Locke)
05:54 Getting It Wrong: Not Understanding The Business Of The NFL (Zach Miller)
07:42 Getting It Right: Living Simple And Staying A Ball Guy
08:42 Getting It Right: Building A Giving Plan Before The Requests Come In
09:48 Getting It Right: Thinking Like A CEO
10:48 Getting It Right: Staying Educated, Plus How To Reach Us

In this episode of the NFL Players' Podcast, Sam Acho, Zach Miller, Jeff Locke, and Riccardo Stewart pick up where last episode's Rich Paul conversation left off: is $200 million actually enough to build a 1Hundred Year Family? The guys break down the three things that separate athletes who build real multi-generational wealth from those who don't — integration (getting your whole team rowing in the same direction), specialization (working with advisors who only serve athletes), and the real numbers behind "ultra wealth," including the estate tax most players never see coming. It's a raw, locker-room breakdown of what it actually takes to make your money outlast your career, and then some.

Connect with us
• Call or text: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital

Chapters
[00:00] Recapping the Rich Paul question: is $200 million enough?

[00:02] Stats Say No: Jeff Locke on the hard truth about generational wealth

[00:03] What Is a Family Office: Why it should be an athlete's first hire

[00:04] Integration: Getting your whole team rowing in the same direction

[00:05] The Wealth Strategist: Why you need a quarterback, not "a guy"

[00:07] Specialization: Why athlete-specific advisors change everything

[00:09] Ultra Wealth: What "$30 million net worth" really means

[00:11] Peace of Mind: What it feels like when the plan finally works

[00:13] How to reach the AWM team

Rich Paul told his own clients that $200 million isn't enough money. On this episode, Sam Acho, Zach Miller, Jeff Locke, and Riccardo Stewart kick off a new series, The 1Hundred Year Family, to find out why he's right. They break down exactly where a $200 million contract actually goes: the taxes nobody explains at the rookie symposium, the 40% estate tax waiting on the back end, and the lifestyle creep that quietly sinks more careers than any bad investment. This is part one of a series on what it really takes to build wealth that outlasts your own career — and your kids', and theirs.

Chapters
[00:00] Introduction: Riccardo opens the new "1Hundred Year Family" series and the Pac-Man story that sparked it.
[00:01] Why some things are built to last and most things aren't.
[00:02] Third-generation wealth loss the real reasons families lose it all.
[00:03] Rich Paul's "$200 million isn't enough" comment
[00:03] Sam Acho — "True wealth is what you don't see."
[00:05] Zach Miller: the income tax and 40% estate tax math on a $200M contract.
[00:07] Riccardo presses on double taxation between income and estate tax.
[00:08] Jeff Locke: the 4-5% retirement rule and why it doesn't work for athletes.
[00:10] Lifestyle creep" why it's one of the hardest habits to reverse.
[00:12] Consumerism named as the real enemy of the 1Hundred Year Family

Connect with us
• Call or text: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital

Everyone talks about the number on a signing bonus. Almost nobody talks about what happens to it before it reaches your account. In this episode, the guys break down when rookies and veterans actually get paid, why the state you play in and the team you sign with change how much you keep, and the specific tax-withholding strategy AWM's team used to put an extra $100,000 back in one client's pocket — all without any of it becoming a guessing game.

Chapters
[00:00] Welcome back to the NFL Players' Podcast

[00:00] Setting up today's topic: what's really happening behind the scenes with your signing bonus

[00:01] Why most rookies sign and walk away without asking the right questions

[00:02] When rookies actually get paid — the 15-day portion and the delayed remainder

[00:03] Veterans vs. rookies: how payment timing and negotiation differ

[00:03] The jock tax explained: how state and team both affect what you keep

[00:04] Newsflash: your full signing bonus doesn't hit your account

[00:05] Behind AWM's numbers: $45M+ in gross client signing bonuses this off-season

[00:06] Jeff's world: what AWM's tax team does the moment a client signs

[00:07] Two ways teams handle withholding — and the $100K strategy that worked

[00:08] Why team payroll departments say no one else does this

[00:09] The long-term payoff: paying more now to pay less later, the right way

Connect with us
• Call or text: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital

In this episode, we take you behind the scenes of AWM Capital, sharing personal stories from our own journeys as NFL players and what inspired us to champion athlete-focused wealth management. We discuss the challenges pros face both on and off the field, the shortcomings of the broader financial industry, and the passion that drives their unique team approach. With candid reflections and powerful insights, this conversation offers listeners a rare window into why serving athlete families is different—and how real change happens from within the locker room. If you want to understand the bigger picture of athlete wealth and legacy, this episode is a must-listen.

Chapters
(00:00) Origin Stories and Motivation
(03:15) Building the Athlete-Focused Team
(07:37) Unique Paths Into Athlete Wealth Management
(09:27) Personal Mission to Serve Athletes
(12:15) Changing Athlete Wealth Culture
(14:28) Setting Athletes Up to Succeed

Connect with us
• Call or text: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital

Step inside the high-stakes transition from draft day dreams to real-life NFL careers as hosts Riccardo Stewart, Zach Miller, Sam Acho, and Jeff Locke unite for an unfiltered conversation.

Drawing on their combined 20 years of league experience, they peel back the curtain on everything rookies face after hearing their names called—revealing surprising truths about NFL paychecks, tax pitfalls, smart real estate choices, and the off-the-field team every player needs.

Whether you’re an aspiring athlete, a seasoned pro, or just curious what it really takes to succeed beyond the game, this episode serves up firsthand stories and hard-won advice for navigating the business of football.

Connect with us

• Call or text: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital

Chapters
(00:00) Draft Day Emotions and First Reactions
(04:26) Understanding NFL Pay Structure
(05:54) Tax Surprises for New Players
(07:55) Critical Setup Steps After Being Drafted
(10:26) Deciding Whether to Rent or Buy
(11:33) Key People Every Rookie Needs to Know

Join host Riccardo Stewart alongside Zach Miller, Sam Acho, and Jeff Locke as they tackle the art and strategy of charitable giving for NFL athletes. This episode uncovers the pressures and privileges of generosity, explores the happiness found in giving, and breaks down smart approaches like donor advised funds. With personal stories and practical advice, the team offers pro-level insights to help athletes give confidently and make a greater impact. Whether you're navigating requests from family or searching for tax-savvy solutions, this conversation delivers tools and perspectives to elevate your giving game.

Connect with us

• Call or text: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital

Chapters
(00:01) The Season of Giving and Its Pressures
(01:31) The Personal Joy and Impact of Giving
(03:07) Navigating the Privilege and Pressure to Give
(05:28) Smarter Giving Strategies for NFL Athletes
(07:04) Donor Advised Funds Explained

In this episode of the AWM NFL Podcast, hosts Riccardo Stewart, Sam Acho, Zach Miller, and Jeff Locke unpack the critical issue of digital privacy and personal security for professional athletes. Through candid stories and real-life examples, the team discusses why privacy is often overlooked, how even basic personal information can end up online, and the elevated risks that come with wealth and fame. Tune in to learn what every athlete and their advisors need to know about protecting their assets, families, and peace of mind—on and off the field.

Connect with us

• Call or text: 602-989-5022
• Website: https://www.athletefamilyoffice.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/awmcapital/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awmcapital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awmcapital/
• X: https://twitter.com/awmcapital

Chapters
(00:01) Thanksgiving Reflections and Team Gratitude
(00:36) Favorite Christmas Movies and Segue to Privacy
(02:15) Privacy Risks for NFL Athletes
(03:55) Digital Exposure and Data Vulnerabilities
(06:06) The Role of Financial Teams in Athlete Privacy
(08:18) Increasing Threats with Greater Wealth
(09:53) Practical Protections and Specialist Resources