Xavien Howard plans to save his new found riches

Xavien Howard is the richest cornerback in the NFL for now and he doesn’t intend to squander the new financial security.

When players receive their first big contracts they tend to spend it pretty quickly. Xavien Howard is a new millionaire but he doesn’t seem to be too keen on living like one.

A big takeaway from former Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is that he never spent his NFL salary during his nine-year NFL career. In fact, according to Gronkowski, he lived off the endorsement deals and put away the near $64 million he made right into the bank.

It seems that Howard may take a similar approach, at least in theory. When asked about his new deal and what he bought with the money, Howard said he bought nothing.

"(Are you going to buy yourself something nice?) – “No, I’m going to save it.”(A watch? A car?) – “No, I’m going to save it.” – MiamiDolphins.com"

Howard, if he holds true to what he is saying, is doing himself a huge favor. Players often buy expensive jewelry or they buy extravagant homes and cars, few ever really take care of themselves for a future that will inevitably lead to a life without football.

Howard is saying all the right things about his new contract. He uses words like “humble” to describe the feeling. He also vows to be a leader and while he admits to not being a guy who talks a lot and instead leads by example, he is working on it if you ask him.

"“I want to communicate with the new guys coming in. I’m really a guy that doesn’t talk a lot, but I want to lead by example and I’m also going to communicate more and help my guys out, help my team win.”"

The Dolphins need more vocal leaders on the team. There has been a focus during OTA’s of finding leaders as well as conditioning. While the new contract for Howard is a humbling feeling, there are also big expectations that come with it and they are not all on the field of play.

Whether he expects it or not, players will look up to him and towards him for guidance and leadership and it seems as though he is realizing that he does indeed need to be more vocal. If nothing else, he has earned the respect of his teammates and that is the first step in becoming that leader.