Latest news with #Dews
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Patriots RB coach admits TreVeyon Henderson snubbed him in college
Patriots RB coach admits TreVeyon Henderson snubbed him in college Rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson may be a national champion and a former Ohio State Buckeye, but that wouldn't have been the case if New England Patriots coach Tony Dews had his way. Dews revealed that he pushed hard in recruiting Henderson all the way back in 2017, when he was still the running backs coach for West Virginia. He knew the talent was electric back then, and he was determined to add a potential game-changer to the Mountaineers' offensive backfield. Henderson was a highly-touted running back recruit, ranking as the 11th overall player in the 2021 class, the top running back in the class and the top player in his class from the state of West Virginia, according to 247 Sports' recruit rankings. Fast forward eight years later, and Dews will finally have an opportunity to work with Henderson in New England. The highly-touted running back was taken in the second round of the 2025 NFL draft by the Patriots. 'I was very excited about it. I tried to recruit him back in high school - years ago when I was at West Virginia," said Dews, via MassLive's Mark Daniels. "He snubbed me. But it was good to be able to reconnect with him. Obviously, I'm very excited about him and what he might be able to do to help us going forward.' Henderson's addition to a Patriots' offensive backfield that also includes Rhamondre Stevenson, Antonio Gibson and rookie Lan Larison gives Dews plenty to work with in the 2025 season. It's a room crowded with talent, including a legitimate home run threat with the former Buckeye. Follow Patriots Wire on Twitter and Facebook.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Patriots coach excited about impressive rookie running back
FOXBOROUGH – Before the start of the second round, the Patriots front office was engaged in a debate. One argument was for Arizona guard Jonah Savaiinaea, who projected as the team's starting left guard. The other side wanted running back TreVeyon Henderson. While the two sides discussed each player, Patriots running backs coach Tony Dews waited and hoped he'd finally land the impressive prospect who once rejected him. Advertisement In 2017, Dews recruited Henderson to come to West Virginia. The 5-star recruit was the nation's top-ranked running back and ultimately committed to Ohio State. When the second round began, the Miami Dolphins traded up, one spot ahead of the Patriots, and drafted Savaiinaea. The Patriots then turned down several trade offers and selected Henderson with pick No. 38. Dews was thrilled to land the young running back. 'It's exciting,' Dews said. 'As assistant coaches, you evaluate the guys they give you to evaluate and you have an opinion on them. At the end of the day, we're going to coach whoever they put in our room but certainly, he was a guy who had done some really good things in college and he fits some of the needs that we felt like we could address with our running back situation. Advertisement 'I was very excited about it. I tried to recruit him back in high school - years ago when I was at West Virginia. He snubbed me. But it was good to be able to reconnect with him. Obviously, I'm very excited about him and what he might be able to do to help us going forward.' The Patriots have big plans for Henderson. After committing to Ohio State, he turned into one of the best running backs in college football. With game-breaking ability, Henderson averaged 6.8 yards per carry his freshman season, finishing with 1,248 yards and 15 touchdowns. After dealing with some injuries (fractured left foot in 2022 and ankle/knee injury in 2023), he showed his explosiveness last season. Sharing the backfield with Quinshon Judkins, Henderson averaged 7.1 yards per carry and finished with 1,016 yards and 10 touchdowns. Advertisement During the pre-draft process, Dews found himself enamored with Henderson - both as a person and as an athlete. The 22-year-old's well-roundedness impressed the Patriots running backs coach. 'First and foremost, he's a great human being, great person, great kid,' Dews said. 'Obviously, the physical attributes. He's certainly fast so he brings a speed element to our team that anytime you can get a guy as fast as he is, it's beneficial for the whole offensive unit and special teams. And then he obviously caught the ball well out of the backfield. He did a really good job I thought in pass protection. 'In the time I got to spend with him, he seemed to pick up concepts fairly quickly. With all those things, you feel like you're getting a good prospect, and we'll have to see how it materializes from there.' BETTING: The Patriots are +130 to win over 8.5 games on Fanatics. If you're a new sports bettor, make sure to check out our Massachusetts sports betting guide for beginners. For all of the best Patriots over/under bets, take a look at our in-depth expert analysis. More Patriots Content Read the original article on MassLive.
The National
05-02-2025
- Business
- The National
Can employee saving schemes be a substitute for pensions in the UAE?
Chris Keeling, a British expat in Dubai, enrolled in Dubai International Finance Centre's Employee Workplace Savings (Dews) plan when it was first introduced in the financial free zone in 2020. Mr Keeling, 36, views the Dews plan as his pension scheme and aims to remain invested long-term. Until this scheme was introduced, employee's end-of-service benefits usually filled the gap for a lack of workplace saving plans from companies in the UAE. 'There are various investment options and asset classes to invest into within Dews," he says. "As I work in the financial services industry myself, I am comfortable investing into higher-risk asset classes – however, there are many options for lower-risk investors, too." DIFC was the first body in the UAE to overhaul the gratuity system – a defined, end-of-service benefit that all expat employees are entitled to after completing at least one year of service – when it introduced the Dews plan in February 2020. Since the success of this model, other companies have followed suit and implemented similar workplace saving schemes in the UAE. Employees in the free zone with under five years of service are required to contribute 5.83 per cent of their basic salary on a monthly basis to a fund administered by a trust. This is increased to 8.33 per cent of basic salary for those with more than five years' service. Employees also have the option to contribute an additional amount but this is voluntary. 'I would like to see more employers implement this type of employee saving scheme as a brilliant additional employee benefit,' Mr Keeling says. The Dews scheme is a funded saving option, as opposed to unfinanced options such as defined benefit schemes. In the UAE, the alternative to Dews is the more traditional employee gratuity scheme, also unfunded. While gratuity is a 'promise' by a company to pay an employee a defined amount in return for a defined period of employment, the Dews scheme is an actively funded scheme by the employer on a regular basis – usually monthly. With Dews, there is a tangible pot of money that is segregated specifically for each employee, Mr Keeling explains. 'It is not the employer's responsibility to invest the funds within Dews, neither is it the Dews administrator's," Mr Keeling says. "Instead, the employee makes the investment decision. Independent advice can be sought if the employee is not comfortable in making the investment decision. The contributions are invested with the expectation of growth over time; however, the invested amount can go down in value as well as up.' When the Dews scheme was introduced in 2020, employees were offered the choice of taking their gratuity entitlement in cash or transferring it into the Dews investment. If an employee leaves their employment, a partial or full withdrawal from Dews can be made. The scheme can also be continued if an employee moves to another Dews qualifying company. Withdrawals of voluntary contributions can be made while still in employment but there are limits, Mr Keeling says. 'Dews can be easily viewed and managed through an online portal. Performance can be reviewed and investment funds changed online by the employee. If managed correctly, Dews is a great way to save for your future and I hope more companies across the country implement similar schemes soon.' Sukoon Workplace Savings Solutions (SWSS), a fully owned subsidiary of Sukoon Insurance, recently launched the Go Saver employee money purchase scheme, to provide end-of-service benefits and workplace savings to companies in DIFC. Go Saver offers employees access to a range of investments. It features a fully capital-protected option provided by Sukoon Insurance and Generali Global Pension, a selected list of 13 independent funds, including Sharia-compliant solutions, and three risk-based portfolios offered by global asset manager Franklin Templeton, designed to cater to diverse risk appetites. These include a conservative, balanced and dynamic approach for those who want to take more risks. Sukoon Workplace Savings Solutions is the plan administrator and Corporation Service Company provides the trustee services. 'We launched the scheme in the DIFC, because this is where it is mandatory,' says Emmanuel Deschamps, executive vice president, head of individual life and workplace saving at Sukoon, and chairman of SWSS. "But the target is to launch the scheme in the mainland very soon." The main benefit of such schemes for the employer is the externalisation of balance sheet liability, while they offer employees ownership and visibility of their investments. It helps further financial education and to create a better pension mindset, he says. In a defined benefit system, there is a 'lot of uncertainty' because employees know they will get 'some money at some point'. If the employer is a wealthy company, the employee will receive their gratuity. In a defined contribution scheme, the employee's contribution goes to an account which is frozen, but it belongs to them and they can manage the amount. It removes the risk of uncertainty for employees, Mr Deschamps explains. 'In any mature market, workplace savings schemes should be mandatory. We expect it will be mandatory in the UAE, but you need to educate people and make them understand how it works,' he says. 'There is no pension and retirement mindset in the UAE for many reasons. It needs to be built. When people see the money, decide how to invest it and manage their returns, that will start building awareness that they need to save money for retirement.' Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching, says end-of-service gratuity (EOSG) payments in the UAE are not designed to cover a person's retirement needs fully. While they provide a financial cushion on leaving employment, they are typically a lump sum based on salary and years of service, rather than a structured, long-term retirement income, she explains. "Given rising living costs and longer life expectancy, EOSG payments are generally insufficient to sustain retirement unless supplemented by personal savings and investments," Ms Glynn says. "For comparison, pension schemes in many other countries, such as the US and Canada, provide regular payouts over time, often with employer and employee contributions growing over decades. EOSG, on the other hand, is a one-time payment that is unlikely to match the compounding benefits of structured retirement plans." Many expats use gratuity as a financial bridge while transitioning to a new job or moving back home. Others may use it to pay off debt or fund a major life event. A smaller portion of individuals invest it for retirement, real estate or other long-term assets. However, because EOSG is often seen as a windfall rather than a structured retirement benefit, a significant number of employees spend it, Ms Glynn says. "Schemes like the Dews plan are a step in the right direction but are not a direct substitute for pension systems in countries like Canada or the US," she adds. "Unlike traditional pensions, where payouts are guaranteed and calculated based on salary history and years of service, Dews depends on market performance and personal contributions." The flexibility of Dews allows employees to build retirement savings in a structured way but it still lacks the long-term security and government-backed guarantees of pension plans such as Canada's CPP or the US Social Security system, she says. "For expatriates in the UAE who do not have access to home-country pensions, Dews provides a vehicle for accumulating retirement funds that is compounding over time," Ms Glynn adds. "Ultimately, employees should take an active role in their retirement planning, supplementing EOSG or Dews with personal investments in diversified portfolios to ensure long-term financial security."
Khaleej Times
29-01-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Dubai: New gratuity investment scheme launched to boost employees' savings
A new saving and investment scheme has been introduced in Dubai to boost employees' end-of-service benefits. Sukoon Workplace Savings Solutions Limited (SWSS), a subsidiary of Sukoon Insurance, has launched a capital-protected 'Go Saver Employee Money Purchase Scheme', which caters to companies and employees in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels. This is the second saving plan introduced for the employees based in the free zone after Dews. The SWSS aims to expand its reach to mainland UAE and other free zones in the future. Under Sukoon's Go Saver plan, employees will have access to a diversified choice of investments. The offering features: A fully capital-protected option provided by Sukoon Insurance and Generali Global Pension A selected list of independent funds, including Shariah-compliant solutions A range of risk-based portfolios offered by Franklin Templeton, designed to cater to diverse risk appetites Emmanuel Deschamps, chairman of the SWSS, said the plan 'will provide a competitive advantage' to customers.
