- Presumptive top NFL draft pick Trevor Lawrence has signed a promotional deal with cryptocurrency website Blockfolio.
- Blockfolio bills itself as ‘the leading network for mobile cryptocurrency portfolio tracking and management’.
- Lawrence will be paid in cryptocurrency for his endorsement deal.
Former Clemson quarterback and all but certain top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft Trevor Lawrence is not a typical football player. He’s been dubbed a ‘generational talent’, a term most recently associated with NHL superstar Connor McDavid. He’s one of only two quarterbacks to win the National Championship as a true freshman. He’s also mature beyond his years–not unlike the aforementioned Edmonton Oilers captain–and remarkably poised and cerebral for a 21 year old college athlete. A few analysts have suggested that the Jacksonville Jaguars should select Ohio State’s Justin Fields over Lawrence. The same analysts might have in 1984 stressed to the Portland Trail Blazers that they should pick Sam Bowie with their #2 NBA draft pick over a shooting guard from North Carolina named Michael Jordan, CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson pretty much said it all in his mock draft:
Wilson continues to say that Lawrence’s best trait is his ‘football IQ’. His arm strength and pocket movement are also first rate. His ‘weaknesses’ are minor–the observation that ‘he occasionally forces throws’ isn’t inaccurate but that rap could apply to a sizable percentage of elite NFL QB prospects. I’d set the Over/Under on his Wonderlic test score at 42.5 which would make him second best among all active NFL players behind Harvard graduate Ryan Fitzpatrick who famously scored 48 with some suggesting that he intentionally missed a question as to not get a perfect score. He’ll at least score 7 times higher than another National Championship QB–Vince Young, who infamously scored a 6. Lawrence really is the total package, a rare QB prospect who despite having all of the physical gifts at 6’6″ with a cannon for an arm is most exceptional because of what is between his ears.
Lawrence demonstrated some of that intelligence early this week with one of his first endorsement deals. While most newly minted pro athletes focus on shoe deals and the like Lawrence has signed on as a promotional partner with cryptocurrency app Blockfolio. Here’s how financial website The Street reported it:
Trevor Lawrence, the former star quarterback for Clemson and this year’s number one prospect in the NFL Draft, has signed an endorsement deal with Blockfolio, a site that lets you buy, sell and track Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Lawrence is set to be the number one pick of this year’s NFL Draft taking place from the 29th through May 1st. Lawrence will be paid in cryptocurrency for the deal.
Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of the FTX exchange, which also owns Blockfolio, said that the shaggy haired QB was a perfect fit since he was ‘excited about crypto’:
“We’re really trying to get our name out a lot. Trevor was excited about crypto. That’s what drew us to him.”
In the press release announcing the deal CEO Bankman-Fried corroborated Lawrence’s maturity, smarts and class:
“Trevor Lawrence is the future of professional football and cryptocurrency is the future of money, so the partnership was a no-brainer. But as impressive as Trevor is on-the-field, I was most impressed with his character and charitable focus off the field.”
Lawrence is being paid in crypto for his promotional deal. According to Blockfolio his signing bonus was paid directly into his crypto account and consisted of Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana. Trevor’s clearly going to be good at the sponsorship game:
“I’m really excited to be joining the Blockfolio team. When it comes to my crypto portfolio, I wanted a long-term partner in the space that I could trust.”
Trevor’s next stop will likely be Jacksonville–the Jaguars have the top pick in the April 29 NFL Draft. At BetOnline.ag, Lawrence is a -10000 choice to be the first overall pick as well as a -10000 chalk to be the first quarterback selected.
