Antonio Cromartie is famous for his prowess on the football field, having children, and now? Spending lots of money in his first two years in the league. $5 million to be exact. The Jets CB opened up to Bob Glauber of Newsday (via Larry Brown Sports) and said his spending was out of control when he first landed in the NFL with the San Diego Chargers. “I had two Dodge Chargers, probably spent $100,000 just fixing them up,” he said. “I had a ’65 Caprice, which I spent $100,000 on. I had two BMWs, two Escalades. I remember [former Chargers teammate] Quentin Jammer used to tell me to slow down, but I couldn’t do it. I just loved spending money.” We here at Laces Out are always amazed when we hear stories of people buying multiple cars. Seriously, how many can you drive? How can you keep track of all those car titles? All those insurance payments? The service schedules? That would make our heads spin. He also spent big on two homes, jewelry, shopping sprees and cash gifts for his friends and family. BUT, this story does have a happy ending. Cromartie is now taking his finances seriously. Instead of his fleet of nine cars, he now drives around town in a Prius. He also has a new financial adviser, Jonathan Schwartz, who is working with him to build his money. In fact, Schwartz even invited Cromartie to live with him and his family for a short time. “My intention was to show him that there are people who love you for who you are, not for how much you make," Schwartz said. "When I first met him, I saw a wonderful heart and human being that people were taking advantage of, and I wanted to be a part of seeing his personal growth. Part of that is financial discipline.” Cromartie is taking those lessons to heart. “I tell the young guys, ‘Don’t spend any money the first year and a half of your career,’” he said. “You don’t know what will happen after that. You might be released. You might be hurt. Just save your money.” Questions? Comments? Send them to lacesoutmail@gmail.com and we might respond in our weekly mailbag!
