Except, it was all a sham. Those blingy earrings? Bought at costume jewelry store Claire’s, a favorite of preteen girls everywhere. The high-flying lifestyle? Not so much; Johnson opted — and apparently still opts — for budget airlines like Spirit. In a time when pro players often embrace the celebrity lifestyle and blow through million-dollar salaries, he managed to save an impressive 83 percent of his career earnings.

Johnson revealed all on a recent appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s podcast, “Club Shay Shay,” telling the host of his frugal ways:

“Fly private? I ain’t flying private. Put me on Spirit. Exit row. Window seat. That’s all I need. As long as I get from point A to point B. I don’t need private.”

And in case you think this is a guy who has to economize now that he’s retired, think again. He was a budget shopper all along:

“I never brought real anything when I was playing. Never. What was the point? I went to Claire’s. For what? What am I doing it for? The women are going to deal with you anyway, because of who you are, and then the other women, who are really doing their homework done Googled how much you making already. Why am I buying a $50,000 watch, $80,000 dollar [sic] watch?”

The most impressive part of the interview is that Johnson is unapologetic in his personal fiscal conservatism, something that is rare in today’s celebrity-obsessed society. These days, professional athletes are expected to dress fashion-forward, date a model (or an Instagram model, at the very least), sport eye-wateringly expensive jewelry and vacation in exotic locales — and they must plaster pictures of themselves living the luxe life all over social media. Those that choose a more humble lifestyle are often mocked as being boring. For instance, when Kirk Cousins was quarterback of my Washington Redskins, he was well-known for driving his grandmother’s conversion van and was labelled a square for being so practical.

But Johnson seems to understand the fallacy of trying to maintain the image of a celebrity, saying it’s a losing game “trying to appease others who don’t care a thing about you.” He added, “Everybody’s caught up in image and looking a certain way and being rich. It’s pointless.” The thing that’s really valuable, he said, was his name:

“I’m Ocho, what’s the point? There’s nothing I can buy that’s bigger than my name alone.”

These are important life lessons from Johnson that are welcome in a social media-drenched world where many young people think they need Gucci everything and will bankrupt themselves to get it. Ocho said of pro athletes who fall into this trap, too: “Do you know how hard is to live like that all the time, consistently, and be fly every day? It’s impossible to sustain.” In a world where as many as 78 percent of NFL players face some sort of financial hardship after retiring, these are very wise words

And Johnson is handing down these important lessons to his kids, as our own Becca Lower noted back in 2021, when reporting on a text exchange Johnson had with his daughter. It went something like this:

“Daddy[?]”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Let me know when you go to Token Miami to get more shoes. Imma come with you, cause I wanna get these Yeezys [designer shoes] that they have.”

“You said you were getting a job. I worked at McDonald’s by Edison to attain extra stuff I wanted in high school.”

“When I finish school, I’m getting one. How Imma get a job and I have school & track practice to attend throughout the day [?]”

His answer to her was perfect:

“I caught the bus to school then went to football practice, caught the bus to McDonald’s for a 6-hour shift — all while maintaining a 2.2 GPA & being a star athlete.”

And lest you think Johnson’s frugality makes him a cheapskate, that doesn’t appear to be the case:

.@ochocinco on why he leaves $2K tips: I'd add an extra 0 if I was Elon & Bezos pic.twitter.com/WEURiZEdxC

— shannon sharpe (@ShannonSharpe) February 1, 2023

You can listen to the entire episode here.