Jets' McCutcheon has made mental health awareness his mission since best friend's death in 8th grade

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Lance McCutcheon can't remember what caused the sudden rift between him and his best friend.

The details don't really matter now to the New York Jets wide receiver. He just knows he never got to smooth things over with Connor Mills.

And he never got a chance to say goodbye.

“Guilt is definitely the biggest thing I would say is just, you know, we let some stupid stuff get between us,” McCutcheon told The Associated Press after practice Wednesday. "We were in eighth grade. And I didn’t know that my best friend was at his lowest.

“That’s something I'll hold on to for the rest of my life.”

On May 31, 2013, Mills died by suicide. He was 14.

McCutcheon and Mills were inseparable as youngsters growing up in Bozeman, Montana, having played on the same travel basketball team since the second or third grade. They shared countless meals, laughs and life experiences.

“He was my best friend,” McCutcheon said. “He was like a brother to me.”

Despite all the fun times together, McCutcheon was unaware Mills was struggling.

“Whenever I’m talking about this or I'm by myself and in my own thoughts, I've got to live with knowing that I let something get in between us and I wasn’t able to be there for him and help him through it," he said. “And he passed without me being able to tell him how I really feel about him.”

McCutcheon leaned on his family and friends to speak about his feelings, allowing himself to grieve and process his emotions.

It has been a long road, though, and one that continues today.

“I think it’s very important just to find at least one person you know to talk to,” he said. “It’ll help you so much just by letting it out instead of keeping it in for days and days and days — until you can't anymore.”

McCutcheon's left arm is covered by tattoos, including one right below his shoulder of a lion wearing a crown. A little further down, he has the name “Connor” in black ink on his forearm. He also has the dates of when Mills was born and died tattooed on his left wrist.

“I look down,” McCutcheon said, “and I’ve got his name right there.”

It's right above the name “Grady” in honor of Grady Dawkins, another close friend who died in a car accident nine months after Mills. In the quiet moments before a game, McCutcheon speaks to both, hoping they can help provide him confidence and strength.

“Everyone has their own battles,” McCutcheon said. "I’m not the only one in this world who’s lost loved ones, lost family. Everyone’s been through things and been fighting their own battles. I try not to dwell on all the negative stuff that’s happened in my life.

“I mean, I’m here. I’m playing football in the NFL, you know?”

The 25-year-old McCutcheon, in training camp with the Jets competing for a roster spot, has been an advocate for mental health awareness since his best friend's death. He tells male athletes, in particular, that it's OK to show their emotions and not be afraid to have “an uncomfortable conversation” when they're struggling.

“Whether you’re a star athlete or student, whatever it is, you can be anything you want to be,” he said. “But whatever it is, you’re not alone.”

After going undrafted out of hometown Montana State in 2022, McCutcheon signed with the Los Angeles Rams as a free agent. During that season, he was able to support the American Foundation For Suicide Prevention on his cleats during the NFL's annual “My Cause My Cleats” campaign.

“We're here for you,” McCutcheon said when asked what he'd tell someone struggling with their mental health. "It's a lot more painful to the ones that love you most, thinking that you can never reach out to them and open up and explain what's kind of going on and what you've been feeling. ...

“But I promise you that when you do open up, that person is going to embrace you and love you for a lot more than what you're going through and what you're fighting.”

During his first NFL preseason, McCutcheon led the Rams with 15 catches for 259 yards and two touchdowns. It was enough to earn him a spot on the 53-man roster out of training camp. He played in 10 games as a rookie, but had no catches while seeing only five passes thrown his way.

He was waived by Los Angeles as part of the Rams' final cuts last year, signed with Houston's practice squad a few days later and let go again nearly two months later. The Jets gave him a shot on their practice squad last October and signed him to a reserve-future deal in January.

Now, McCutcheon is hoping for a chance to stick with a wide receiver group that includes Garrett Wilson, Mike Williams and Allen Lazard — and maybe catch some passes from Aaron Rodgers.

And that's something McCutcheon knows his late best friend would think is pretty cool.

“I just hope that he’s watching over me every day,” McCutcheon said. “I hope he’s proud of me and he’s happy for me and I just keep this going.”

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This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

FILE - New York Jets' Lance McCutcheon participates in a practice at the NFL football team's training facility in Florham Park, N.J., Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Three Americans, two Spaniards and a Czech citizen were arrested Saturday after Venezuelan officials accused them of coming to the South American country to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro.

The arrests were announced on state television by Diosdado Cabello, the nation's powerful interior minister. Cabello said the foreign citizens were part of a CIA-led plot to overthrow the Venezuelan government and kill several members of its leadership. In the television program, Cabello showed images of rifles that he said were confiscated from some of the plotters of the alleged plan.

The arrest of the American citizens included a member of the Navy, who Cabello identified as Wilbert Joseph Castañeda Gomez. Cabello said that Gomez was a former navy seal who had served in Afghanistan, Iraq and Colombia. Spain's embassy in Venezuela did not reply to a request for comment on the arrests of its citizens.

The U.S. State Department late Saturday confirmed the detention of a U.S. military member and said it was aware of “unconfirmed reports of two additional U.S. citizens detained in Venezuela.”

“Any claims of U.S. involvement in a plot to overthrow Maduro are categorically false. The United States continues to support a democratic solution to the political crisis in Venezuela,” the statement said.

The announcement of the arrests comes just two days after the U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on 16 allies of Maduro who were accused by the U.S. government of obstructing voting during the disputed July 28 Venezuelan presidential election, and carrying out human rights abuses.

Earlier this week, Spain's parliament recognized opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez as the winner of the election, angering Maduro allies who called on the Venezuelan government to suspend commercial and diplomatic relations with Spain.

Tensions between Venezuela's government and the U.S. have increased as well following the election, whose result sparked protests within Venezuela in which hundreds of opposition activists were arrested.

Venezuela's Electoral Council, which is closely aligned with the Maduro administration, said Maduro won the election with 52% of the vote, but did not provide a detailed breakdown of the results.

Opposition activists, however, surprised the government by collecting tally sheets from 80% of the nation's voting machines. The tally sheets collected by the opposition were published online, and they indicate that Gonzalez won the election with twice as many votes as Maduro.

Despite international condemnation over the election's lack of transparency, Venezuela's supreme court, which has long backed Maduro, confirmed his victory in August. Venezuela's attorney general then filed conspiracy charges against Gonzalez, who fled to Spain last week after it became clear he would be arrested.

Maduro has dismissed requests from several countries, including the leftist governments of Colombia and Brazil, to provide tally sheets that prove he won the election. Maduro, who has been in power since 2013, has long claimed the U.S. is trying to overthrow him through sanctions and covert operations.

The Maduro administration has previously used Americans imprisoned in Venezuela to gain concessions from the U.S. government. In a deal conducted last year with the Biden administration, Maduro released 10 Americans and a fugitive wanted by the U.S. government to secure a presidential pardon for Alex Saab, a close Maduro ally who was held in Florida on money laundering charges. According to U.S. prosecutors, Saab had also helped Maduro to avoid U.S. Treasury sanctions through a complex network of shell companies.

FILE - Socialist Party President Diosdado Cabello gives his weekly press conference, in Catia La Mar, La Guaira, Venezuela, Aug. 19, 2019. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)

FILE - Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro addresses government loyalists gathered at the presidential palace in support of his reelection one month after the presidential vote, in Caracas, Venezuela, Aug. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)