BroncoBuff
04-11-2007, 09:47 AM
Wealth, not work, new to Broncos' Cutler
Year after arrival, QB staying grounded despite sudden fame
By Mike Klis
Denver Post Staff Writer
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated:04/11/2007 12:41:51 AM MDT
A year removed from college, where life was so much simpler, with greater freedoms and little money, Jay Cutler struggles to recall how much his world has changed.
It had not occurred to him, partly because his world has been spinning so fast, there has barely been time to stop and think. And partly because not everything about 365 days ago was worth remembering.
"I was living in your basic two-bedroom, small apartment," Cutler said about the off-Vanderbilt-campus dwelling he shared with offensive lineman Ryan King. "I think we were paying $700 a month between the two of us. It was your basic low-key, low-maintenance, well-used college place."
This would be the understated version, the kind a Realtor might consider for the brochure. The reality of a tiny apartment shared by two college football players?
"You should have seen the dump he was living in," said Jack Cutler, Jay's father. "His mother didn't want to go in it. She'd wait outside."
It's to the contrary now. While Mom and Dad are waiting for their house to be built in the Denver area, they are staying at Jay's primary home in the south suburbs. He has another place downtown, where it's easier for a highly recognizable young man to blend in, impossible as that is, anyway.
A year ago, Cutler didn't have a dollar that wasn't borrowed, stepping over the dirty clothes and fast-food wrappers in his rented Nashville, Tenn., "pad," wondering how soon his name would be called in the first round of the 2006 NFL draft.
Today he is the starting quarterback of the Broncos, which automatically makes him the most famous man in Colorado not named John Elway or Mike Shanahan. The No. 11 overall pick in last year's draft, Cutler is about to receive a windfall in excess of $11 million this year.
He has a nice new vehicle, and complete strangers coming up to him on the streets offering the kindest of compliments. Luckily for the Broncos, fame and fortune isn't what makes Cutler tick. He is in it to play quarterback, to play in the Super Bowl, to become a champion.
It doesn't matter where Cutler was a year ago. What's important is he realizes 20 years from now, all that will matter to the general football public is how many touchdown passes he threw, how many games he won. To date, the totals are nine TD passes, 1,001 yards and two wins.
"That is the thing," Jack Cutler said. "That's where he can really stay grounded because he has not accomplished what he wants to accomplish. He had a nice first year, but he's not even close to what he wants to be. I think he keeps that in the back of his head. He's had a good five games, but he has a lot bigger goals than that."
The money and limelight? They are byproducts, not the end-all. Cutler doesn't see most of his money, anyway. Who does? Like many people, Cutler lets financial experts worry about his money while he gets up every morning for the primary purpose of going to work.
"We were here a month early doing stuff by ourselves," Preston Parsons, a Broncos backup quarterback and one of Cutler's closest friends, said after the team's offseason workout Tuesday at Dove Valley. "You can see he loves football. The limelight and money, you can do a lot of fun stuff with it. But I know he's turned down tons of (paid appearances) that could have been a lot of fun to go do, but he stayed here working out."
Just say no, Jay
To say fame hasn't at least nominally affected Cutler is to say he isn't human. Cutler has told those close to him there are times when he feels he has people coming at him with a push, pull and tug every which way.
"It takes away a little of your freedom, your privacy," Cutler said about going out in a public that knows his name and recognizes his face. "You're not able to do some of the things you could have done two years ago, going out, hanging out, not being bothered. But that's part of being an NFL quarterback, especially in a town like Denver where it's such a popular position."
Perhaps the biggest adjustment any celebrity must make is learning how to say no. Having grown up in Indiana in the friendly town of Santa Claus, rejecting even the smallest favor is not in Cutler's nature.
The relatively new phenomena of cellphones and the Internet, however, often leaves Cutler with no choice. In our country's society, almost everyone has a cellphone. And almost all cellphones have photo-taking capabilities.
This has made posing for a picture with little Johnny or sweet Annie an almost relentless request.
"And almost everyone with a picture knows how to send it via e-mail, which is the gateway to the Internet," said Judianne Atencio, who runs the charitable foundations for both Cutler and the Broncos quarterback he replaced, Jake Plummer. "It bothers Jay to have to say no. But we tell him he has to. He has learned to say it."
The overpopulated media, few of whom knew Cutler from cutlery at this time last year, have discovered him just in time to encounter a thickening screen between the star quarterback and those personal interview requests.
It's one thing to answer a reporter's question. It's another to have that comment repeated back by a stranger while eating dinner at a restaurant.
"He has his moments with the limelight where sometimes he enjoys it, a lot of time he doesn't, but I've seen a lot of guys come through it, No. 1 pick, and they go the opposite direction and become too cool," Parsons said. "He's not doing that."
Much of that level-headedness can be credited to Cutler's upbringing. His mom and dad watched all his games, whether the season was football, basketball or baseball. His dad, not a hired-out contractor, is finishing Jay's immense basement.
"You know, Jay has a lot of money and everything, but I'm still used to pinching pennies and watching the bills," Jack said.
One of Jay's sisters, Jenna, moved out last year from southern Indiana.
It's a Midwestern support group that lets him know he is Jay Cutler, not a famous Broncos quarterback.
"Everything has happened so quickly," Cutler said. "But it's exciting. This is what I've signed up for and I'm happy to be here."
A year to remember
So much has happened in the life of Jay Cutler the past 365 days. A few ways that life has changed for the Broncos' quarterback:
Car, then: 2001 Lincoln (Dad bought).
Car, now: 2008 Lexus SUV (Jay bought).
Residence, then: Two-bedroom apartment, Nashville, Tenn.
Residences, now: Home in a south suburb of Denver; downtown loft.
Salary, then: $0. His last paying job was hauling trash from the back of a garbage truck for $8 an hour.
2007 salary: $11.2 million (includes $3 million bonus if he takes 45 percent of 2007 snaps).
Status, then: Single.
Status, now: Single.
Priority, then: Get drafted among the top 15 picks.
Priority, now: Get prepared for first full season as the Broncos' starting QB.
http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_5637773
Year after arrival, QB staying grounded despite sudden fame
By Mike Klis
Denver Post Staff Writer
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated:04/11/2007 12:41:51 AM MDT
A year removed from college, where life was so much simpler, with greater freedoms and little money, Jay Cutler struggles to recall how much his world has changed.
It had not occurred to him, partly because his world has been spinning so fast, there has barely been time to stop and think. And partly because not everything about 365 days ago was worth remembering.
"I was living in your basic two-bedroom, small apartment," Cutler said about the off-Vanderbilt-campus dwelling he shared with offensive lineman Ryan King. "I think we were paying $700 a month between the two of us. It was your basic low-key, low-maintenance, well-used college place."
This would be the understated version, the kind a Realtor might consider for the brochure. The reality of a tiny apartment shared by two college football players?
"You should have seen the dump he was living in," said Jack Cutler, Jay's father. "His mother didn't want to go in it. She'd wait outside."
It's to the contrary now. While Mom and Dad are waiting for their house to be built in the Denver area, they are staying at Jay's primary home in the south suburbs. He has another place downtown, where it's easier for a highly recognizable young man to blend in, impossible as that is, anyway.
A year ago, Cutler didn't have a dollar that wasn't borrowed, stepping over the dirty clothes and fast-food wrappers in his rented Nashville, Tenn., "pad," wondering how soon his name would be called in the first round of the 2006 NFL draft.
Today he is the starting quarterback of the Broncos, which automatically makes him the most famous man in Colorado not named John Elway or Mike Shanahan. The No. 11 overall pick in last year's draft, Cutler is about to receive a windfall in excess of $11 million this year.
He has a nice new vehicle, and complete strangers coming up to him on the streets offering the kindest of compliments. Luckily for the Broncos, fame and fortune isn't what makes Cutler tick. He is in it to play quarterback, to play in the Super Bowl, to become a champion.
It doesn't matter where Cutler was a year ago. What's important is he realizes 20 years from now, all that will matter to the general football public is how many touchdown passes he threw, how many games he won. To date, the totals are nine TD passes, 1,001 yards and two wins.
"That is the thing," Jack Cutler said. "That's where he can really stay grounded because he has not accomplished what he wants to accomplish. He had a nice first year, but he's not even close to what he wants to be. I think he keeps that in the back of his head. He's had a good five games, but he has a lot bigger goals than that."
The money and limelight? They are byproducts, not the end-all. Cutler doesn't see most of his money, anyway. Who does? Like many people, Cutler lets financial experts worry about his money while he gets up every morning for the primary purpose of going to work.
"We were here a month early doing stuff by ourselves," Preston Parsons, a Broncos backup quarterback and one of Cutler's closest friends, said after the team's offseason workout Tuesday at Dove Valley. "You can see he loves football. The limelight and money, you can do a lot of fun stuff with it. But I know he's turned down tons of (paid appearances) that could have been a lot of fun to go do, but he stayed here working out."
Just say no, Jay
To say fame hasn't at least nominally affected Cutler is to say he isn't human. Cutler has told those close to him there are times when he feels he has people coming at him with a push, pull and tug every which way.
"It takes away a little of your freedom, your privacy," Cutler said about going out in a public that knows his name and recognizes his face. "You're not able to do some of the things you could have done two years ago, going out, hanging out, not being bothered. But that's part of being an NFL quarterback, especially in a town like Denver where it's such a popular position."
Perhaps the biggest adjustment any celebrity must make is learning how to say no. Having grown up in Indiana in the friendly town of Santa Claus, rejecting even the smallest favor is not in Cutler's nature.
The relatively new phenomena of cellphones and the Internet, however, often leaves Cutler with no choice. In our country's society, almost everyone has a cellphone. And almost all cellphones have photo-taking capabilities.
This has made posing for a picture with little Johnny or sweet Annie an almost relentless request.
"And almost everyone with a picture knows how to send it via e-mail, which is the gateway to the Internet," said Judianne Atencio, who runs the charitable foundations for both Cutler and the Broncos quarterback he replaced, Jake Plummer. "It bothers Jay to have to say no. But we tell him he has to. He has learned to say it."
The overpopulated media, few of whom knew Cutler from cutlery at this time last year, have discovered him just in time to encounter a thickening screen between the star quarterback and those personal interview requests.
It's one thing to answer a reporter's question. It's another to have that comment repeated back by a stranger while eating dinner at a restaurant.
"He has his moments with the limelight where sometimes he enjoys it, a lot of time he doesn't, but I've seen a lot of guys come through it, No. 1 pick, and they go the opposite direction and become too cool," Parsons said. "He's not doing that."
Much of that level-headedness can be credited to Cutler's upbringing. His mom and dad watched all his games, whether the season was football, basketball or baseball. His dad, not a hired-out contractor, is finishing Jay's immense basement.
"You know, Jay has a lot of money and everything, but I'm still used to pinching pennies and watching the bills," Jack said.
One of Jay's sisters, Jenna, moved out last year from southern Indiana.
It's a Midwestern support group that lets him know he is Jay Cutler, not a famous Broncos quarterback.
"Everything has happened so quickly," Cutler said. "But it's exciting. This is what I've signed up for and I'm happy to be here."
A year to remember
So much has happened in the life of Jay Cutler the past 365 days. A few ways that life has changed for the Broncos' quarterback:
Car, then: 2001 Lincoln (Dad bought).
Car, now: 2008 Lexus SUV (Jay bought).
Residence, then: Two-bedroom apartment, Nashville, Tenn.
Residences, now: Home in a south suburb of Denver; downtown loft.
Salary, then: $0. His last paying job was hauling trash from the back of a garbage truck for $8 an hour.
2007 salary: $11.2 million (includes $3 million bonus if he takes 45 percent of 2007 snaps).
Status, then: Single.
Status, now: Single.
Priority, then: Get drafted among the top 15 picks.
Priority, now: Get prepared for first full season as the Broncos' starting QB.
http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_5637773