The Golden Bachelor star Mel Owens built a career as an NFL player and lawyer before reality TV

The Golden Bachelor season 2 premiered on September 24, 2025, introducing Mel Owens as the franchise’s latest lead.

At 66, Owens arrived on the show after a long career in professional sports and law, a path that gave him financial success before he ever joined the reality series.

While viewers know Mel Owens now for giving out roses, his past includes years as an NFL linebacker and later as a lawyer.

He played for the Los Angeles Rams in the 1980s before starting business ventures and co-founding a California law firm focused on sports cases. His move to television drew attention after his comments on age preferences sparked debate.

Owens later apologized, explaining he had been out of dating for decades.

The Golden Bachelor, first launched in 2023 with Gerry Turner, continues to showcase later-in-life love stories. Now with Owens as the lead, fans are watching how his past shapes his search for love.

A long career in sports and law shaped Owens before his reality television appearance in The Golden Bachelor

Owens’ career began on the football field. He attended the University of Michigan, playing for the Wolverines from 1976 to 1980 before being drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in 1981.

Selected as the ninth overall pick, he signed a contract worth $175,000 per season and played nine years with the team. In 1986, he was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

After retiring from the NFL in 1989, he explored several ventures. He launched a clothing brand, Evolution Wear, and operated a nationwide restaurant hotline called 1-800-LETS-EAT. He also worked as a financial advisor at Merrill Lynch after passing the Series 7 Exam.

His most notable shift came when he became an attorney. Owens earned a Juris Doctor from the University of California Hastings College of Law and was admitted to the State Bar of California in 2003.

He later co-founded the law firm Namanny, Byrne & Owens in Laguna Hills, where he specialized in sports law and workers’ compensation.

Over his career, he represented more than 250 professional football players in injury claims.

He also worked on a 2013 lawsuit involving professional hockey players against the National Hockey League.

These experiences placed him in high-profile roles long before television. As for his Golden Bachelor salary, reports suggest that most leads in the franchise earn between $110,000 and $120,000 for their season.
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Owens’ comments on age sparked backlash and an apology before The Golden Bachelor season 2 began 

Before the season aired, Owens gave an interview where he explained the age range he had in mind for potential contestants. On the “MGoBlue Podcasts With Jon Jansen,” he said,

“I just said, ‘45 to 60,’ just being honest. If they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them. This is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor.”

He also added that contestants “have got to be fit, because I stay in shape and workout and stuff,” and told producers to “try to stay away from the artificial hips and the wigs.”

The reaction to his statements drew criticism from Bachelor Nation fans. Reports suggested that ABC even considered replacing him before the premiere.

Owens later acknowledged the issue in an interview with Glamour in August 2025. Recalling advice from a longtime friend, he said she told him,

“What you said was insensitive, and it’s just not who you are.”

He explained that because he had not dated in more than two decades, his sense of age preferences was outdated. Owens added,

“I didn’t know anything about the Golden Bachelor ages. I’m thinking, to me, the age range was 45 to 60. That’s my age range. My reference, again, was when I was dating at 39, 40. I hadn’t dated in 26 years, so I had no clue. And that’s why I said that comment.”

His apology allowed the season to move forward as planned.

Stay tuned for more updates.