As a certain aging quarterback prepares to scratch an annual itch that typically doesn’t return until August rolls around, a younger quarterback who has called it quits says that he has yet to get the urge to play again.
“I’m completely at peace,” former Rams, Giants, and Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner told Bickey and MJ of Xtra Sports 910 in Phoenix, via SportsRadioInterviews.com. “The itch has not come back one bit. I’ve loved my time in the NFL and I will always say that. It did so much for me and my family and it was a dream of mine to play at that level and to accomplish some of the things that I did, but I knew it was the right time.
“I continue to remember how difficult the last couple of years were. I knew that they were rewarding, I know we accomplished a lot things, and I enjoyed my time these last couple of years in Arizona, but it was just really, really hard on me. It wore me down both physically and mentally and that was the biggest reason I retired. And I remember that. As much as I love the game and I would love to suit up and play one Sunday here and one Sunday there, it’s bigger than that. To try and accomplish and play at the level that I tried to play at my whole career, it takes a high level of commitment. I think I gave that every time I was on the football field and every time that I signed up with each and every team I played for, but I just was not willing to give that anymore. That’s why the itch hasn’t come back because I remember how much I would have to give and how I’m not willing to do that anymore.”
As to the team’s fate going forward without Warner, the future Hall of Famer was guarded in his assessment.
“As we both know, the bottom line comes down to what do you do on Sunday afternoons when everything is on the line,” Warner said. “Do you have the guys that can step up and make the plays that need to be made to win football games? Philosophies are great and good teams are great, but the bottom line in this business is it comes down to great players making big plays at big times and we’ve lost some of those here with the Cardinals.”
Though Warner didn’t mention himself or his successor, Matt Leinart, specifically, it’s hard not to assume that Warner was referring to the challenges that the team now faces at the quarterback position.