Brown, who was born in Los Angeles, was an All-American cornerback for Nebraska from 1996 until 1999, after which he was drafted by the New York Giants in 2000. He spent four seasons with the Giants, then moved on to stints with the Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland Browns and Arizona Cardinals until he left the game in 2009.
In July 2010, he married Smith, a former Indianapolis Colts cheerleader and Deal or No Deal briefcase model (alas, starting in 2008, after Meghan Markle had already left). They were already parents to Noah, who was at her mom and dad’s wedding in Indianapolis, and son Braker was born in 2011.
It’s unclear when they split up (reports say 2012), but Smith told London’s Metro in May that when they did divorce, her longtime friend (and now boss) Jason Oppenheim “literally co-signed an apartment for me and my kids. I was getting turned down right and left and he’s like, ‘As long as you pay the rent on time, it’s fine.'”
She continued, “I decided to start my real estate career to provide for my family. I have two amazing kids. I’ve been a single mom since they were one and two, they’re now eight and nine. When I met my ex-husband he was playing in the NFL. It was pretty comfortable. When we separated, my ex unfortunately couldn’t even pay child support.”
