Nickname: Montlake Jake
Introduction
Jake Locker is one of the more interesting athletes that I can remember seeing as a young boy. I say “seeing” and not “watching” as there weren’t many times that I actually watched him play as he had a lot of injuries during his short four year NFL career. “Wow, FOUR YEARS WILL?!?! Why the hell would are we talking about this guy?” A fair point my fellow reader, but I believe Mr. Locker’s story should be told for two reasons: one, his reasoning for why he stepped away from football at such a young age is a great feel good story and two, he was a cheat code in Madden 11 on the Wii (he could not be sacked).
Why He Should Be Remembered
Locker earned his nickname “Montlake Jake” from being dubbed the savior of a struggling Washington Huskies football program all the way back in 2005. After spending five years there (he redshirted his freshman year), Locker was selected 8th overall by the Tennessee Titans in the 2011 NFL Draft. To be honest, and I mean this with no disrespect to Jacob, draft night was probably the highlight of his career. After four short seasons marred by injuries, Montlake Jake hung up the cleats leaving many asking why walk away at such a young age. Well the answer was simple: he hated the NFL. Alright maybe not hate, but he didn’t like what came with being a top pick. It wasn’t like he didn’t like football or the pressure got to him, he just wasn’t motivated by the fast life that many of the top NFL players are involved with. He hated the way the media twisted his words around and all fan attention. Being “the guy” as a star football player just wasn’t for him. Locker is a very religious man and his idea of a peaceful life is being a great dad and husband, working on his farm, and having Jesus be the center of his life. Look, in a materialistic world where everyone believes they are great, a guy like Jake Locker is almost so refreshing it’s labeled as “weird.” I did not really expect this part of the blog to get deep like this, but basically I am saying that Locker should be remembered because he’s got a good head on his shoulders (and that will probably be the only time that I say that as a reason for these athletes on this website).
Why He Is Not Remembered
As mentioned before, Locker dealt with a plethora of injuries during his short time in the NFL. As a result, he didn’t really do much. For his career, he threw for 4,967 yards to go along with 27 touchdowns and 22 picks. While that is 27 more touchdowns than I’ll ever throw in the NFL, those numbers aren’t exactly going to get your jersey retired (or maybe not even washed by the laundry team, hahahaha right? C’mon I know you laughed at that). Couple his limited stats with the fact that he disliked fame and you get a dude that can probably go anywhere in public without getting recognized.
Where He Is Now
Currently, Jake is living in Ferndale, Michigan with his wife and children. He co-owns a local gym named Locker Room Fitness Center (that’s a double pun right there, that’s clever. See, I told you that he is a good dude). He spends time with family, reads The Bible, and enjoys fishing and hoarding his cattle (is that what people with farms and cattle do? Hoard the animals? I am not sure if that’s the proper terminology, but whatever). He is at peace and I give him all the respect in the world for recognizing what he had to do to get it. Ya know if he ever sees this I hope he knows that I am proud of him. Actually, maybe he won’t like the fact that I wrote about him once this website gets big. Maybe I should delete this to keep his life private.
