When P.J. Locke was 14 and growing up in Beaumont, Texas, he wrote a “Dedication Contract” in which he vowed to do whatever it took to make the NFL.

Locke accomplished that goal, earning a spot on the practice squad for the Broncos in 2019 and becoming a full-time starter at safety for the first time this season. But Locke’s writing days about the NFL are far from over.

“Hopefully, one day I can write a book about my whole journey,’’ Locke said. “My goal is to write a book and just inspire people because it’s been one heck of a journey to where I’m at now.”

Indeed, it has been. Locke was 5-foot-4 in the 10th grade before he had a growth spurt that got him close to where he is now at 5-10. He was overlooked by scouts before earning a late scholarship to Texas, where he played well.

Nevertheless, Locke was passed over in the 2019 NFL draft and then was cut after signing with Pittsburgh. He spent four months back in Beaumont working in the family real estate business before the Broncos signed him to the practice squad.

After that, it took him four years before he started a game in the NFL. But Locke, despite missing the first four games in 2023 due to a toe injury, played well enough to get a two-year, $7 million contract last March. And then this season he has become a fixture at safety for Denver.

Adversity over? Not exactly.

Locke, 27, suffered a dislocated and fractured left thumb in what he called a “freak” practice injury Oct. 23 that forced him to miss two games. He returned Nov. 10 at Kansas City to begin a four-game span in which he played wearing a cast. He is hopeful of going to a lighter wrapping for Sunday’s game against Indianapolis at Empower Field at Mile High, one that would enable him to move his fingers.

Overall, though, Locke said it just means he has another chapter for his book.

“It’s been frustrating because I’ve been just completely relearning to tackle, using more of my right hand,’’ Locke said. “You never really realize how much you use your thumb and those type of things. But I’m just grateful it didn’t keep me out longer and I’m still able to play.”

It takes a lot to keep Locke out. Last season, he suffered a neck injury in a Dec. 10 game at the Los Angeles Chargers that caused him to temporarily lose his voice and have chest soreness. He was cleared to play in the Dec. 17 game at Detroit, but doctors said he couldn’t fly. So, he traveled to the game 40 hours roundtrip in an RV and played 56 of 66 defensive snaps.

Sounds like that also could be in his book.

“It seems like all his life he’s always taken the tough road,’’ said Locke’s father, James Locke Jr. “But at the end of the day, he’s always been able to rise up and be able to achieve his goals.”

Locke’s full name is James Abner Locke III, and he wears “Locke III” on the back of his jersey. He has been called P.J. since he was little since his father’s nickname is “Pookie” and the son became “Pookie Junior.” That was then shortened to initials.

Locke’s father played safety at Oklahoma Panhandle State and was pivotal to his son’s football development. When P.J. was young, he began to teach him all sorts of football moves and training methods, including backpedaling, how to break on the ball and pulling sleds.

Locke first played football when he was 10 in 2007 for the Beaumont Bulls. It was around that time his father summoned his son to come outside on the lawn.

“I told him to go put his uniform on and he said, ‘I don’t have a game, dad,’’’ said Locke’s father. “I said, ‘Son just put your uniform on.’ … So, I told him to get in a little three-point stance and I threw a forearm at him, and he flew back. He looked up at me and his helmet was twisted and he said, ‘Daddy, why did you hit me like that?’ I said, ‘Are you hurt?’ He said, ‘No.’ I said, ‘Nobody’s going to hit you as hard as that and if you hit them before they hit you, you won’t get hurt.’ From that point on, he was never scared of anything.”

Locke remembers that incident well.

“It was like, ‘Boom,’ and when I got up, I was wiping all the grass off my facemask,’’ Locke said. “But from that point in little league to even now, I’m just playing reckless in a way, sacrificing my body when I’m tackling and stuff like that.”

When he was 14, Locke was so dedicated to football he drew up a contract. He had seen a television show in which then-BYU star basketball player Jimmer Fredette had signed a contract as a kid saying he would do whatever it took to play in the NBA. The guard ended up playing six seasons in the league.

Locke’s contract read, “I James PJ Locke agree to work and make necessary sacrifices starting on this day Mar. 17, 2011, to be able to reach ultimate goal of playing in the NFL.” He signed it as did his father as a witness.

“From that point on, I made all the necessary sacrifices to make the NFL,’’ Locke said. “There were some things then that I couldn’t do in high school, like going to parties and stuff like that. School would start at 7:30 but I would get up at 5:30 and meet my dad and we would work out at 6 or 6:30.”

Locke’s father said his son would “do something every day to get himself better.” But despite all this dedication, Locke still faced adversity.

“I had people at my own high school doubting me,’’ he said of his early years at Beaumont’s Central High School. “They said I was too small and not physical. I used to write down stuff and just pin it to my mall.”

Locke, helped by his work ethic and growth spurt, eventually proved doubters wrong. He played linebacker in high school as a junior and cornerback as a senior before earning the late scholarship to Texas.

With the Longhorns, Locke moved into the starting lineup as a sophomore, was a captain as a junior and was honorable mention All-Big 12 as a senior. Still, he was passed over in the NFL’s seven-round draft.

Locke jokes he was “like a 10th-round pick” since he did get signed as a non-priority undrafted free agent by the Steelers. He got a $2,000 signing bonus.

Locke ended up getting cut from the Steelers just before the start of the 2019 season and returned to Beaumont. He spent four months there working in the family business, which includes his father owning Redeem Construction, which works on houses, and his mother Shawn Webb-Locke owning the real estate company Shawn SOLD It.

“That was the most discouraging time of my career,’’ Locke said. “But I had a community of people around me that kept me going. My dad always uses the term, ‘The sky is dark before it’s bright.’”

That saying originated from Locke’s grandmother.

“My mom always told me, ‘It’s always darkest before it gets bright,’’’ said Locke’s father. “It’s like going through a tunnel. It’s dark but at the end of the tunnel there’s going to be brightness. And I knew that it would be the case with P.J. No one ever has outworked P.J. I put his work ethic against anyone hands down.”

After three months of being without a team, Locke flew to Florida and was ready to sign in November 2019 with the Tampa Bay Vipers of the XFL, a spring league that was to play in 2020. But just as he was about to sign his contract there was a snafu.

“The iPad I was going to sign it on completely crashed, and like five minutes after it crashed and they were trying to reboot everything, my agent texted me and said, “You got a workout with the Colts and the Broncos,’’’ Locke said. “So, I was left with a decision because if I signed, I couldn’t work out with an NFL team.”

Locke then called family members for advice while the Vipers tried to entice him with more money.

“I ended up betting on myself,’’ Locke said of turning down the Vipers, a team that would go out of business after five games when the coronavirus pandemic shut down XFL in March 2020.

At the Colts workout, Locke was told they had interest in signing him to a futures deal in January. The Broncos also put Locke on hold. But then a month later he got a call inviting him to join Denver’s practice squad, and he signed on Dec. 17, 2019.

Locke said he had “less than $200 to my name” when he arrived in Denver and had to wait two weeks for his first paycheck. He called it a “nerve-wracking experience” when he went out to eat with other defensive backs on the team.

“We went to a fancy steakhouse and I’m looking at the menu and I’m like, ‘Oh, my God,’’’ Locke said. “So, I end up getting like a salad and guys are saying, ‘Man, why are only getting that?’ And I said, ‘Bro, I can’t afford this.’’’

Thankfully for Locke, then-Broncos safeties Justin Simmons and Kareem Jackson agreed to buy him a steak.

After that, Locke slowly moved up with the Broncos. He started the 2020 season on the practice squad but was signed to the active roster by the end of September and developed into a fixture on special teams. He was hopeful of playing a bigger role to start the 2023 season but the toe injury in training camp landed him on injured reserve for four games.

Locke eventually got healthy and made his first career start against Kansas City on Oct. 29, 2023, when Jackson served the first game of a two-game suspension for an illegal hit. Jackson later got a four-game suspension for another illegal hit and eventually was released. So, Locke ended up in 2023 starting eight games, helping a defense that got much better after a shaky start.

“I’ve been proud of P.J.,’’ said Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph. “I thought P.J. came in last year and played really well for us and kind of turned our season on defense.”

After the Broncos released Simmons last March in a salary-related move, it became a priority not to lose Locke when he became a free agent. So, they signed him to the two-year, $7 million deal.

“I was so happy I was in tears,’’ Locke said. “But I feel like that contract is just a stepping stone. I honestly feel like my career is just getting started, just being a first-year starter and and now just learning from the ups and downs of that. I personally feel like I can achieve to get another contract. … The biggest goal is generational wealth for me.”

In the meantime, Locke has developed into a steady performer and a key leader on defense. Joseph said he “comes into the game-plan meetings with the coaches” and “wants to grow as a player.” Second-year safety JL Skinner looks up to Locke.

“Honestly, he’s one of the hardest workers,’’ Skinner said. “He does a lot of stuff behind the scenes that people don’t see. He’ll be in the weight room all by himself doing his own thing. … He’s one of the leaders of our group, and I love everything about P.J. He gives me tips about football, but I also get tips about life from him. … I know all about his story, coming in undrafted and it’s just inspiring to me.”

For that reason, Locke wants to eventually write a book to share his story with others. Broncos star cornerback Pat Surtain II, in his fourth season, said he would read it.

“It’s been pretty awesome to see his story with everything he’s been through,’’ Surtain said. “It’s definitely an underdog story. But he’s shaped himself to make himself a household name here at the end of the day. It’s very motivating.”

In the last game Locke played on Dec. 2 against Cleveland, he pumped up fellow undrafted defensive back Ja’Quan McMillian with a motivational speech late in the game, saying a big play was needed because “our path here to the NFL wasn’t easy.” Soon after that, McMillian returned an interception 44 yards for a touchdown with 1:48 left to close the scoring in a 41-32 win.

Perhaps that also will make it into Locke’s book.