Football, Finance & You

A recent Baltimore Sun article found that the Ravens are reading more than just the playbook. Mystery novelist James Patterson was the most popular author among the team, but Cramer’s Mad Money: Watch TV, Get Rich got an honorable mention, too, by defensive tackle Justin Bannan.

Bannan spoke to Cramer via remote from Baltimore about his concerns about the weakening U.S. dollar, high oil prices and inflation. Cramer thought some exposure to gold and overseas equities could help, and so might a mutual fund to protect Bannan’s investments.

And if the pro football player doesn’t have the time to do the homework necessary to make decisions on his own, then Bannan shouldn’t be afraid to bring his concerns to his financial advisers, Cramer said.

In preparation for retirement, Cramer thought Bannan might want to pick a stock or two to follow in the meantime. Bannan should do what NY Giants Michael Strahan did and invest in a company he’s familiar with, like Under Armour. That way Bannan will have a better handle on investing once he has the time to research stocks on his own.

That’s “definitely something I would look into,” Bannan said, because “I’ve got a lot more to learn.”

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