026 ERIC DECKER - former NFL Wide Receiver

Eric is a former standout NFL wide receiver who played 8 seasons in the league with the Denver Broncos, Tennessee Titans, and New York Jets, he was part of the historic record setting 2013 Broncos offense lead by quarterback Peyton Manning, and later ended his career with a short stint, as he calls it, his "cup of coffee in New England" for a few weeks of training with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick before ultimately making the decision to retire from the game and step headfirst into the next chapter of his life as a focused and present father. Eric now lives in Nashville TN with wife Jessie James Decker, who you probably know as famous country music star and founder of the exploding Kittenish apparel company. Eric serves as the president of Kittenish. Today he talks about how he's been able to find both competition and camaraderie in the world of business which he mentions has been huge for him in his transition away from football. One thing I really respect about Eric, and I didn't even know this our conversation, is that a big part of the reason he retired from football was so that he could show up as the husband and father that his young family needed at the time. I have so much respect for a guy who in the midst of an NFL career on the line was able to keep his top priorities in order and make a difficult decision with confidence. Eric a humble, down to earth dude, and a guy I always enjoyed rooting for in the league, partly because he was on my fantasy team a lot of the time. But above it all, he's an incredible man, husband, and father, and I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity to connect with him.

DISCUSSION POINTS

• Eric talks about his childhood
• Growing up in a small town
• Playing two sports in college at Minnesota 
• Why Eric chose football over baseball 
• How Eric met Jesse
• What attracted Eric to Jesse
• life changing perspective from having kids
• Impact of having kids on NFL career
• Why Eric ultimately retired from the NFL
• Transition from NFL to full time dad/husband
• Finding camaraderie amongst men after football 
• Forging friendships through fitness
• Running Kittenish
• Leadership lessons from Peyton Manning 
• Letting your kids fail
• Do you want to be good or great?
• Leadership lessons from Tom Brady
• The role Jesse plays for their family 
• Date night
• Best marriage advice
• How do you balance everything that you have going on?
• What Eric struggles with
• What Eric is the most proud of
• What Eric wants his legacy to be with his kids

LINKS

• IG: @ERICDECKER
• www.kittenish.com