Lamonte Winston, who has over 25 years of experience advising and consulting professional athletes in both life skills development and post-NFL career development, joins the Oakland Raiders as Director-Player Engagement.
Winston returns to his native Bay Area, having attended Oakland's Skyline High School, Merritt Junior College and San Francisco State. For the past two years, Winston has served as President/CEO of The Winston Group, which assists athletes at all levels in enhancing their life skills through "know-how, planning and disciplined hard work."
He spent 17 years with the Kansas City Chiefs, including 14 as Executive Director of Player Development, and is a founding member of the NFL Player Development Steering Committee. While in Kansas City, Winston established the Chiefs Player Development Program and the NFL/ NCAA Champs Life Skills Program to educate athletes on the business of the NFL and their preparation for life after football.
Winston originally joined Kansas City as an area scout in 1993. Before joining the Chiefs front office, he spent eight years as an assistant coach at the college level—at University of Nevada from 1990-93 and San Francisco State from 1986-89. Winston played football at Skyline High and Merritt, then transferred to Westminster College before moving on to San Francisco State. He also coached football at Merritt and Albany High School.
The NFL commissioned The Winston/Shell Award, which recognizes the Most Outstanding Player Development Director/Program in the NFL. The NFL named the award after Winston and Donnie Shell because the NFL considers these two the indisputable leaders and innovators of Player Development in the League.
