For Lindsay, who now knows all the responsibilities that come with being an NFL player, the call amazes him even more.

"Being in this job here in the NFL, it's hard to find time to do the little things sometimes," Lindsay says. "It's not even that you forget; it's so much going on. And for him … in my senior year of high school, at my lowest point, he called out of the blue. I was watching a Colorado Buffaloes game, and he called me. That gave me a lot of hope. It felt good that somebody cared enough to be able to contact me and reach out to me at the lowest time of my life."

Though visiting West's practice Tuesday isn't the same scenario, Lindsay knows the standard that's been set for him as far as making an impact on young lives, and he wants to hold himself to that — even just days after becoming the first undrafted rookie to record at least 100 yards from scrimmage in each of his first two games.

"I'm never going to be too big for this," Lindsay says. "This is how I grew up and where I came from. Everybody here knows who I am, and it just feels comfortable. I don't have to sit there and put on an act for anybody. I can just be myself, which I am anyway. But [it's great] to just be able to be here and feel comfortable and see these young men and try to impact them so they can go on to college."

So when he spoke to the students, who will participate in this week's Broncos High School Game of the Week against North High School, he spoke of that importance, hoping they might follow in his footsteps as a scholar with two degrees, regardless of whether they're able to chase NFL dreams as he did.

"That's the biggest thing," Lindsay says. "The NFL is going to be there, and it's going to come and go faster than you would go to college. For college and getting a degree, it's probably one of the most satisfying things you can have. Yeah, I'm in the NFL and I'm grateful for it, but at the end of the day, I do have my degree. I have two. I'm excited about that, and I want to make sure that they understand that."

Following the speech, Lindsay walked off the field, meeting a few players one on one, including one who told Lindsay that he's his hero.