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Howard Slusher, Sports Agent Known for His Toughness, Dies at 85

For years, his hardball tactics, including holding out players for as long as a year to win bigger contracts, made him the enemy of team owners.

The sports agent Howard Slusher used hardball tactics to win lucrative contracts for professional athletes. Credit...courtesy of the Slusher Family

In 1984, when he was seeking a new contract for Randy White, the future Hall of Fame defensive tackle for the Dallas Cowboys, the agent Howard Slusher advised him to hold out — stay away from the team until he got what he wanted — a familiar tactic in Mr.