Former NFL QB Posts “Feel-Good Story Of The Week” On Instagram
Jay Cutler has some pretty impressive football credits on his resume. SEC Offensive Player of the Year in his senior season at Vanderbilt, a first-round draft pick of the Denver Broncos, a Pro Bowler in 2008, and leading the Chicago Bears to the NFC Championship Game in 2010. His latest accomplishment might top them all though.
Last week, Cutler and Outsider CEO Sam Mackey went on a hunting trip and invited some very special guests to join them for the two-day excursion. They welcomed five NSW Gold Star wives to join them for the weekend to try their hands at hunting and enjoy the outdoors.
Gold Star wives are those whose husbands lost their lives in service with the Armed Forces of the United States. NSW (Naval Special Warfare) Gold Star wives are those whose husbands were Navy SEALs. Mackey explained, in this video posted to Outsider’s Instagram and Twitter, that he was close friends with the husbands of two of the wives invited on the trip.
A Good Shot First Time Out
Outsider also posted several photos of the special weekend on its Instagram account. This included an impressive photo of one of the wives who got a nice buck on her first shot and first time out shooting with a bow.
Other photos showed Mackey and Cutler with all of the wives, throughout the weekend.
Praise for Mackey and Cutler came in from all over social media for their support of Gold Star wives and families. Maria Mashenka, one of the wives who attended, posted this comment:
“Thank you for such an incredible time and beautiful memories! Our hearts are full of happiness and freezer is full of meat! Couldn’t have asked for a better company!”
NSW Gold Star wife Maria Mashenka
Cutler’s History Of Community Outreach
Cutler, who founded the Nashville-based Outsider after his playing career ended, wanted the organization to be a reflection of his lifestyle. This hunting trip was the embodiment of that spirit. Cutler has a strong history of outreach. During his playing career, he founded the Jay Cutler Foundation to help at-risk youth, and he still volunteers with Vanderbilt’s Best Buddies program.
In addition, Cutler also works with a diabetes foundation in Denver (he suffers from Type 1 diabetes), and during the 2009 season, he partnered with Eli Lilly to donate $100 for every pass he completed and $1000 for every touchdown he threw for children to attend diabetes camp. Cutler finished that season with 336 completions and 27 touchdowns.
Cutler is also an unapologetic conservative. Recently, he hosted fired ESPN anchor Sage Steele on his podcast to let her speak about how the network tried to silence her about her opposition to trans women competing in women’s sports.
A Social Media Legend
Of course, longtime users of social media also will remember Cutler for the “Smokin’ Jay Cutler” memes. Starting in 2012, and still going on, Cutler was an internet sensation as people photoshopped images of him with cigarettes and cigars, as an expression of just not caring anymore. The meme spawned the popular Smokin’ Jay Cutler Tumblr account (which is still active) and people post those memes on X to this day.
Jokes and memes aside though (and he has always been a good sport about them), what Cutler and Mackey did last weekend was truly an honorable thing. They expressed their gratitude for fallen Navy SEALs while also showing their unwavering support for their families, who have had to endure the sacrifice those men made.
Thank you to Jay Cutler, Sam Mackey, to all servicemembers, and of course, to all Gold Star families as well.