No big contract or Super Bowl ring can change C.J. Anderson

“Money never made me. Make me do something? Nah, can’t make me.”

Those are the words of Kanye West but they sound quite similar to those of Broncos tailback C.J. Anderson, who signed a four-year, $18 million contract with the Broncos this offseason.

“Big money. [Aqib] Talib said he can’t wait to see how my life changes,” Anderson told reporters on Monday afternoon. “To myself, I’m going to be myself. You won’t see any jewelry or fancy cars. That’s just not me.”

A Super Bowl ring on his finger won’t change him either.

“I don’t think it’s different at all,” he told. “It’s come back with the same mindset to work. I think the only difference is you know what’s going on as far as what are the expectations and what they want from you. The same work is demanded. That’s what I’m doing.”

For Anderson, it’s that blue-collar approach that’s gotten him this far. Undrafted out of the University of California in 2013, the bruiser has always had a chip on his shoulder, you may not find a player with a better perspective. So when the Broncos placed a low-round tender on the man who shined for them in the playoffs out of the backfield, he didn’t have hard feelings.

“I don’t think I was upset,” he told. “When we lost the Super Bowl in 2013, I felt like I wasn’t good enough to be a part of that team. I felt like I wasn’t good enough to get on the field to make plays to help my team win. Obviously, I got the low tender because whatever I did in those three years, my three years here, I didn’t do enough to get a high tender. I felt that. I’ve always put the pressure, I’ve always put the blame on myself, and never the organization or the business or how things go. If I make more plays, obviously you’ll get a higher tender. I left it at that.”

But the low tender wasn’t enough to enough to protect the Broncos asset from outside interest, so when push came to shove and the Miami Dolphins submitted an offer sheet, the Broncos did what they had to to keep C.J. around and matched the offer.

“It’s just huge,” he said of returning to the Orange & Blue. “The growth that I’ve gained from [Running Backs] Coach [Eric] Studesville, now you can see it in meetings where we’re talking. I’m even putting him in more situations where it comes to questions. I’m asking him a lot more questions about what we did last year and how we can be better from it. Making sure he does his job like he’s making sure that I’m doing mine. I think Coach Studesville has always been in my corner since I’ve been here. We’re just trying to get better every day.”

The next step for Anderson is to stay fully healthy throughout the year, “If I can stay healthy, I’m a dangerous guy,” he said.

The 5-foot-8, 224-pound back has had to earn everything he’s gotten to this point, so it’s no surprise that he’s not worried about the Broncos potentially bringing in more backs.

“Bring them in. We’re happy. We’ve got room,” he said with a smile. “Bring them in. It’s only going to make us better. We’ll make them better. They’ll catch up and we’ll catch up. Just bring them in.”

A lot has changed for C.J. Anderson in the last year, but that can’t change C.J. Anderson.

“Just play football. I’ve been playing ball,” he explained of his never-changing approach. “It’s not the leadership, but the pressure that you put on yourself. You just play football. You’ve been playing this game for a long time. This is my fourth season in the NFL now. I know what the expectations are, what my body needs and where everything needs to be. I’m just going to out there, play ball and have fun.”

I guess the money never changed him, I guess he never forgot where he came from.