Former NFL receiver Laveranues Coles has a new calling.
The 10-year veteran, who played for the Jets, Washington, and the Bengals, now works for the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
And he’s not the only former NFL player who works there. A new report from Kathy Park of NBC News spotlights Coles and former NFL linebacker Jeff Kopp, both of whom now work for the department. Nine former NFL players currently are employed by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
“This job allows me to feel like I’m a part of something greater than myself, like I was when I was in the NFL,” Coles told Park.
And the police academy was no picnic. “There’s a lot more running,” said Kopp, a detective. “We didn’t run as much in the NFL.”
But they love it.
“It’s a totally natural fit,” Kopp said. “The pay’s not as good as the NFL, but they’re working on it.” That prompted a chuckle from both Kopp and Coles. “He’s laughing harder than me because he made a lot more than me,” Kopp said.
Indeed he did. The 47-year-old Coles reportedly made more than $42 million.
Kopp spent six years in the NFL, from 1995 through 1999. Coles played from 2000 through 2009. He had three seasons with more than 1,000 receiving yards, including two in excess of 1,200.
Coles is familiar with the other side of the criminal justice system. At Florida State during the 1999 college football season, he and Peter Warrick faced felony grand theft charges after a store clerk allegedly sold them $412.38 worth of clothing for only $21.40. Coles pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor and was dismissed from the team. Warrick, a Heisman candidate before the arrest, also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor but was allowed to remain on the Seminoles’ roster after missing two games.
Coles had a much more impactful NFL career than Warrick, the fourth overall pick in the 2000 draft.
