TAMPA, Fla. -- Felix Jones, a 21-year-old first-round draft pick for the Dallas Cowboys, scored three touchdowns in his first few NFL games. Then his 2008 season ended because of a torn hamstring and a toe injury.

He plans to be back next season, but in the meantime, he put on a suit and joined his advisers at a Player Networking Event the day before the Super Bowl in the relative calm of the University of South Florida's student center.

There, just a few miles away from the stadium where a game the next day would be seen by more than 150 million television viewers, the focus was on life after football.

"The NFL is a job. It's not a career," said Greg Hill, a former running back for the Kansas City Chiefs, St. Louis Rams and Detroit Lions. He was trying to drum up investors for his Colleyville, Texas-based Child N' Play business, which has begun opening drop-in hourly child care centers.

Professional football can be lucrative, glamorous and a lot of hard work, all factors that make it that much harder to get athletes focused on spending some of their off-hours developing plans for their lives after football.

Of about 1,800 players with NFL jobs, about 300 get pushed out every year for various reasons, according to Guy Troupe, a former NFL executive whose Dallas company, Troupe21 & Associates, has organized these gatherings for the past nine years.

The transition can be rough. After working for years to become among the best on the football field, it's hard for many players to get excited about doing anything else, particularly about starting from the ground up in another field.

"Whatever you want to be great at, you're going to stink at [at first]," Mr. Troupe said.

His sessions are set up as part trade show, part networking event and part business training sessions for athletes.

Booths at the recent Tampa gathering included ones for the U.S. Customs & Border Patrol, ice cream chain Baskin Robbins, Voice America Sports and Wingstop Restaurants.

About 400 people responded to invitations for this year's event, including 125 to 130 players, Mr. Troupe said. He didn't expect that many athletes to show, especially since some were prepping for the big game.

Another good excuse for players to miss the networking event would have been using the Super Bowl's diverse collection of corporate executive fans to do a little relationship building.

"Don't just party," Mr. Troupe advised. "But take a few meetings."

Those who did show up at the USF student center came with different agendas.

John St. Clair was there to promote a new line of men's skin care products. The 6-foot 5-inch tackle for the Chicago Bears was decked out in a suit as he showed off bodywash, moisturizing bath and pain relief products from his company, Urbane Pro Sports.

Negotiations have begun to get the line into retail stores and he said a Web site is now under construction.

Mr. St. Clair, who began his NFL career with the St. Louis Rams in 2000, said building a business wasn't his first priority upon entering the league.

"It took me awhile to get this going," he said.

Another relatively new concept was being promoted a few booths away, where Darrel Branch was talking up Locker2Locker, which is meant to be a sort of secure eBay/Facebook combination for professional athletes.

"It'll be a one-stop shop for pro athletes," said Mr. Branch, chief marketing officer for the venture involving Stockar McDougle and Jerome McDougle, brothers who have played in the NFL.

Mr. Hill got the idea for his child care centers during his time with the Rams. The organization offered child care to families of players for the home and the visiting teams because often their very small children weren't interested in watching the football games.

He has opened one center next to a movie theater so parents can leave the kids while they catch a movie. There also are plans for sites in Atlanta.

As Mr. Hill was giving his pitch, a man walked up and asked a few questions.

"Call us," the man said, handing over his business card. "I like this."

Football players need to use the opportunities afforded by their NFL status to build careers, Mr. Hill said. He advises guys to call companies that they're interested in learning about and asking the executives to lunch.

"Because you're an NFL athlete, they'll take that lunch," he said.

Another idea is to ask for an internship, explaining that it doesn't need to include a salary because the players already are drawing a nice paycheck.

"They like giving jobs to people that don't need money."

Mr. Jones, meanwhile, is just starting to learn how to market himself. He came with his attorney and a client adviser from Arvest Asset Management to learn about endorsements, wealth management and even the importance of having a business card.

He doesn't know yet exactly what direction his career will take. But he knows his pro football job won't last forever, a fact that was hard to miss after injuries ended his first season.

"That's when I realized it can go so fast," he said.

Mr. Troupe, whose organization also runs events to help NFL rookies stay grounded in the values that got them to professional football in the first place, said there's still work to be done in developing players' after-football potential.

Many need to be taught how to keep track of their money and maintain a good credit record. There are, after all, a lot of very young men suddenly being signed for big salaries.

He'd also like to get more corporate officials to understand the potential in athletes who've handled adversity as well as diversity on the field and in the locker room.

Mr. Jones seemed convinced that things will work out.

"Football is my passion and I'm going to love it until I get tired and can't play it anymore." But, he added. "Life after football is going to be great."