Livin’ Practical: Ryan Broyles’ $60,000 Budget Allowed One Big Splurge — A Tempur-Pedic Bed

Here’s something you don’t hear very often — a celebrity being practical about money. But when Lions wide receiver Ryan Broyles was drafted into the NFL in 2012, he immediately took measures to keep himself from going broke.

Ryan, his wife, infant son, and two dogs live on $60,000 a year, which is admittedly more than the average American. The laudable news is that the NFL player rakes in a lot more.

“When I come to work, I don’t think about the money, man. I can tell you that, without a doubt. There might be some guys that do but I put myself in a position where I come out here and have fun. I don’t have that pressure, you know what I mean. My wife has no worries. My child has no worries. For the most part, I can help my family, you know.”

It seems hard to imagine that Broyles could go broke with a contract that guarantees a salary of more than $1 million, CNBC reported. But Terrell Owens proves it’s possible. The man played for the San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys, but the $80 million he made doing so disappeared in short order, ABC News added.

Broyles obviously took note of such cautionary tales of pro athletes going broke, so when he became one, Ryan, 27, kept his head out of the clouds and his shopping list short.

"People with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them could ever imagine."

— Ryan Broyles (@RyanBroyles) August 10, 2015

Both Ryan and his wife — also his high school sweetheart — drive Mazdas, and Ryan still drives the 2005 Chevy Trailblazer from his college days. They just bought a new home. Besides that big purchase, Broyles biggest splurge was a Tempur-Pedic bed, The New York Daily News added.

With a comfortable $60,000 a year budget to live on, the rest of Ryan’s fortune goes into investments, which he checks on a phone app every day, and the NFL’s 401(k) matching plan. And as far as Broyles is concerned, that fairly modest salary — in NFL terms — is more than enough.

“I didn’t hold myself back at all on those terms. That’s what I tell people when they want to start to invest, I tell them to live your life and see where you stand and then pull back. Don’t pull back without even knowing. Whatever comes, it’s just a blessing. But I got the mindset of a businessman off the field.”

Ryan isn’t just being practical in the long-term, but in the short-term, too. Since Broyles was drafted in 2012, he’s been bogged down with injuries that threaten his spot with the Lions. Ryan’s lucrative contract is in its final year, and he’s working for a roster spot with Detroit in training camp.

Despite the uncertainty of his career, Broyles isn’t worried, because he’s not in it for the money — he’s in it for the game.

“The pressure I put on myself is just being the best player I am. I would never play [just] for money, you know what I mean, that’s not my intentions whatsoever.”

[Photo Courtesy Gregory Shamus/Getty Images]