As if Antonio Cromartie doesn't have enough to do taking over as the New York Jets top cornerback with the departure of Darelle Revis, now he has become the self-appointed NFL poster boy on the perils of free spending.
According to Newsday, Cromartie said that he blew $5 million in his first two seasons in the NFL. He has fathered 10 children with eight different women, bought several expensive cars and fixed them up, went on other shopping sprees that sometimes reached five figures and gave money to family and friends who asked.
"I was out of control," Cromartie told Newsday. "I remember (former San Diego Chargers teammate) Quentin Jammer used to tell me to slow down, but I couldn't do it. I just loved spending money."
Now, the 29-year-old Cromartie is married - his wife, Terricka is mother of two of his children - and is becoming a mentor for younger players on the importance of saving money.
"I want to help others learn from what I did wrong," Cromartie told the newspaper. "Right now, I try to put away as much money as I possibly can and live on a budget. I learned the hard way."
Newsday reports that Cromartie now drives a Toyota Prius and brags about how much money he saves on gas.
Cromartie, who started his NFL career with the Chargers in 2006 before moving on to the Jets in 2010, signed a four-year, $32 million deal with New York in 2011.
He hired a financial adviser, Jonathan Schwartz, to make sure his spending habits are more responsible.
"I can tell a lot of things to a lot of clients, but that doesn't mean they'll listen and accept what I say and practice that discipline," Schwartz told Newsday. "[Cro] buys into it. He knows that a professional athlete's earning period is limited, and that the best form of accumulating wealth is not to spend. His peers will go buy Rolls Royces and Ferraris and diamond jewelry, but 25 years from now, Antonio can still maintain his lifestyle, sit at the beach enjoying a cocktail and say, 'I've earned it.' "
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