Former standout linebacker Blake Martinez made the decision to walk away from the game of football several months before his age-29 birthday.
That’s a pretty young age to retire from any sport, especially given his successful track record on the field. But no one needs to feel sorry for Martinez, because he has found a more creative way to earn seven figures without putting his body on the line for 17 games a year.
During an interview with CNBC Make It, Martinez detailed how he managed to launch a Pokémon card business worth several million dollars. Last summer, he started the “Blake’s Breaks” card company, which CNBC Make It reports has netted “more than $5 million in revenue on collectible reselling platform Whatnot.”
Martinez collected Pokémon cards at a young age and decided to resume his childhood hobby in March 2020. He shelled out $30,000 on some boxes of cards, and it simply took off from there.
“I think there’s more to my success than [my name],” Martinez told CNBC Make It. “I used to be like the quarterback of the defense, I was calling plays. When I started this business, it felt like running a team again.”
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Not a half bad alternative to playing professional football, alright.
Martinez spent his first four seasons with the Green Bay Packers, which spanned from 2016 to 2019. He signed with the New York Giants in 2020 free agency and lasted two years there before getting released.
The Las Vegas Raiders signed Martinez, who suited up for four games in 2022 before ultimately deciding to retire. With a booming Pokémon cards business, we now wait and see if Martinez manages to “Catch ’em all.”
