Big Red Rage - Inside Kurt Warner's Cardinals Revival
Ep. 776 - Paul Calvisi and Ron Wolfley celebrate the remarkable Cardinals legacy of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner, tracing his journey from a veteran fighting for one last opportunity to the transformational leader who forever changed the franchise. Through unforgettable game calls and firsthand stories from teammates and coaches, they revisit Warner's perseverance through adversity, his leadership during the Cardinals' historic run to Super Bowl XLIII, and the culture of accountability, confidence, and professionalism he brought to Arizona.
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Speaker 1: Strap on the boots and scrape up the knuckles. So
Speaker 1: and ahead, he got jacked.
Speaker 2: This is the Big Red Rage presented by Emergency.
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Speaker 3: All Red Sea, its rising up, jimp you rising vision,
Speaker 3: blurring rage.
Speaker 5: Take it Ober. Here's Paul Calvic.
Speaker 4: I'm ready. I'm one hundred percent ready. I'm telling you
Speaker 4: I'm ready. And Ron Woolfley.
Speaker 1: It doesn't get any better than that.
Speaker 4: Kurt Warner isn't just a Cardinals Ring of Honor player,
Speaker 4: not just a team record setting quarterback. As if that's
Speaker 4: not enough, Kurt Warner stands as his own chapter in
Speaker 4: team history. Again, we're not talking about the record books here,
Speaker 4: because Kurt set plenty of those. We're talking about if
Speaker 4: the book was a Cardinals Big Red Dictionary and you
Speaker 4: looked up the word culture, there'd be a picture of
Speaker 4: Kurt Warner, Paul calvic here, Ron Wolfley there and wolf
Speaker 4: you were there every game of Kurt Warner's career. A
Speaker 4: very special Cardinals Folkdales edition of The Big Red Rage,
Speaker 4: presented by Emergency Air. What's that old saying? Be the
Speaker 4: change you want to see? Kurt Warner was basically that
Speaker 4: as a player upon his arrival in Arizona, Old Graybeard.
Speaker 1: Poly of course everyone. That's what everyone thought he was
Speaker 1: when he showed up here from the New York Giants,
Speaker 1: and the Giants whatever they did to him, I have
Speaker 1: no idea. Kurt has talked about it from time to time,
Speaker 1: but the Giants tried to put him in a much
Speaker 1: more traditional type offense, I think than what he was
Speaker 1: known for, that being the greatest show on turf, and man,
Speaker 1: he came here and I'll never forget the buzz of
Speaker 1: Old gray Beard Kurt Warner being an Arizona Cardinal and
Speaker 1: then to see where he took it. You want to
Speaker 1: talk about a renaissance, Paully, His career was big time renaissance.
Speaker 4: It just took a while to figure it out as well.
Speaker 4: You know, we'll hear from Denny Green with some all
Speaker 4: time colorful sound bites can Wizna reflecting on the greatness
Speaker 4: of Kurt Warner. But eventually when it hit, it took off.
Speaker 4: There's no doubt about it. And it's interesting because not
Speaker 4: long after his retirement, he did an interview with Dick
Speaker 4: Vermal on stage, his old Saint Louis Rams coach. Yeah,
Speaker 4: and he actually looked at Dick Vermeal and he said,
Speaker 4: you know what, in hindsight, I consider my Cardinal's success
Speaker 4: more gratifying and rewarding than my Rams career, even though
Speaker 4: I want to ring was Saint Louis, just based on
Speaker 4: the amount of change that he was responsible for.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Paul, you stop and think about it. I mean,
Speaker 1: Kurt Warner came in here and he was the fire.
Speaker 1: He was the fire, the spark that hit the wood.
Speaker 1: The fuel that was here metaphorically speaking, when you think
Speaker 1: about it, was a Kwan Bolden. It was Larry Fitzgerald
Speaker 1: that was here. It was Carlos Dansby, Darnell Docketted, Kerr Trin, Barry, Paul,
Speaker 1: these guys that were great pros, that fuel that was here,
Speaker 1: and Kirk came in here and he was like the
Speaker 1: spark that ignited that fire. Just watching him go about
Speaker 1: his business too, in the professionalism that he brought, the
Speaker 1: poise that he brought to that position. It was like
Speaker 1: when he stepped into the huddle, he looked at his
Speaker 1: teammates and said, I got this.
Speaker 4: And he brought that accountability which is always a core
Speaker 4: part of culture. I can't tell him an times as
Speaker 4: the sideline reporter, especially if you're a young receiver and
Speaker 4: you messed it up, you would hear from Kurt Warner
Speaker 4: before he even got off the field. How many times
Speaker 4: did he have a shouting match with Todd Haley on
Speaker 4: the sideline over what was going on with the game
Speaker 4: plan or what Kurt was it was not seen, and
Speaker 4: they'd scream at each other for ten seconds, and then
Speaker 4: ten seconds later they'd be looking over each other's shoulder
Speaker 4: at some film clips or some pictures like their BFFs
Speaker 4: all over again.
Speaker 1: You had a great relationship. I remember you specifically talking
Speaker 1: about that BALLI being on the sideline and seeing that unfold.
Speaker 1: Iron sharpens iron, right, and those two guys sharpened each other.
Speaker 1: There's no doubt about that.
Speaker 4: Here's one of my favorite anecdotes Super Bowl Sunday, super
Speaker 4: Bowl forty three. You were on this bus. Well, we
Speaker 4: got out of the team hotel, we got on the
Speaker 4: bus and you remember it, us media guys get in
Speaker 4: the back and the tension on that bus. You needed
Speaker 4: a chainsaw to cut through it. Yeah, the nerves, guys
Speaker 4: were so nervous. You wondered if it was going to
Speaker 4: be debilitating. You could hear a guy swallow five rows
Speaker 4: away and the last gut of board, no joke, Kurt Warner,
Speaker 4: and he got on that bus without a care in
Speaker 4: the world. And he's fist bumping the bus driver and
Speaker 4: he's dapping guys up and he's having Nobody had said
Speaker 4: a word, and Kurt Warner was a chatterbox and he's
Speaker 4: just and everyone in the bus realized simultaneously, Oh, yeah,
Speaker 4: we have a quarterback who's been here and done this twice.
Speaker 4: We have a Super Bowl MVP quarterback. He's going to
Speaker 4: lead us. And how often I think he was the
Speaker 4: catalyst of change without even knowing it. Yeah, because all
Speaker 4: eyes were on him at all times.
Speaker 1: Paully, you have no idea what kind of impact that
Speaker 1: truly can have on a football team. I've talked about
Speaker 1: him many times. When a legend like Kurt Warner when
Speaker 1: he steps into the huddle and he calls the play,
Speaker 1: every head snaps up. It's the respect, the inherent respect
Speaker 1: that Kurt Warner had that really added to all the
Speaker 1: goodness that he brought here.
Speaker 4: And so when we come back, we're gonna hear it
Speaker 4: for ourselves. Warner renaissance man on this very special Cardinals
Speaker 4: Folktales edition of The Big Red Rage presented by Emergency Air.
Speaker 4: Welcome back to our very special Cardinals Folktales edition of
Speaker 4: The Big Red Rage presented by Emergency Air. I'm Paul
Speaker 4: Calvic and his current Warner has always liked to say
Speaker 4: no one had ever gone from Aisle seven to the
Speaker 4: Hall of Fame, meaning there wasn't a precedent, There wasn't
Speaker 4: some roadmap that he could follow for a football player
Speaker 4: to go from stocking the shelves at an Iowa grocery
Speaker 4: store to having your bust on display in Candon, Ohio.
Speaker 4: It's why Kurt's life story literally became a movie script
Speaker 4: American Underdog. By the Way, great watch as the Saint
Speaker 4: also goes. Some players take the elevator to the top,
Speaker 4: and some take the stairs. Kurt's path involved a few
Speaker 4: hard right turns, construction detours to the Arena League and
Speaker 4: overseas through NFL Europe. Kurt knew he could play, but
Speaker 4: could he convince the NFL decision makers? And then out
Speaker 4: of nowhere, it happened in Saint Louis with the Rams,
Speaker 4: two time NFL MVP, Super Bowl MVP, and then in Arizona.
Speaker 4: But for everything fans saw of Kurt Warner out on
Speaker 4: that field and up on that screen, it was Kurt
Speaker 4: behind the scenes who was just as impressive and impactful.
Speaker 4: In Cardinal's folktales, we dive into the archives, So let's
Speaker 4: hit the rewind button on the renaissance man, Kurt Warner.
Speaker 4: When the Red Sea witnessed see change in their football fortunes.
Speaker 6: Very few quarterbacks are able to go from place to
Speaker 6: place to place and to have winning and to have
Speaker 6: culture change follow them.
Speaker 3: Kurt Warner brings the Cardinals back from the dead.
Speaker 7: I mean he changed the team mentality inside out.
Speaker 6: I don't think there was any doubt in six of
Speaker 6: what I could do. The doubt was whether I would
Speaker 6: get the opportunity to do it in Arizona.
Speaker 4: Cardinals select Matt Lioner a quarterback.
Speaker 3: Hussam, you have a quarterback controversy. Who's your starter next
Speaker 3: week against Kansas City?
Speaker 8: What do you know about the quarterback situation going forward? Now?
Speaker 9: Oh, I don't know anything. I'm just going to be
Speaker 9: ready to play whenever I can.
Speaker 10: Matt a start next week, Matt Stunt.
Speaker 6: I was never afraid of competition, but I was always
Speaker 6: afraid of unfair competition.
Speaker 4: We have a quarterback change.
Speaker 11: We kind of honed in on what he did well,
Speaker 11: what we did well, and we became a lot better.
Speaker 6: As the locker room knows, and oftentimes it's the locker
Speaker 6: room that dictates things more than even the organization of
Speaker 6: the coaching staff.
Speaker 4: Kurt Warner was the change. Kurt Warner was the culture.
Speaker 4: What Kurt in the locker room knew the rest of
Speaker 4: the world would soon find out.
Speaker 6: This is kind of how it's always been for me.
Speaker 7: I mean kind of since there's still a gas in
Speaker 7: the tank.
Speaker 3: Kurt Warner looks like the man that won two MVPs.
Speaker 3: In a Super Bowl MVP when he was in Saint Louis.
Speaker 7: Kurt ended up taking over and he saw the magnificence.
Speaker 1: He's still got that MVP form.
Speaker 11: It really kind of got your attention. Wow, this guy
Speaker 11: still got some juice.
Speaker 6: Could I do enough in a short period of time
Speaker 6: to convince people if we just ride this out, we've
Speaker 6: got a chance.
Speaker 1: Old gray Beard showing that his beard isn't quite as
Speaker 1: gray as most people think.
Speaker 4: And think differently is what Kurt Warner forced people to do.
Speaker 4: He changed minds both about his own career and the
Speaker 4: state of the franchises he played for. Welcome in to
Speaker 4: Cardinals Folk Tales Renaissance Man presented by seventy two sold
Speaker 4: where we go in depth into Cardinals history, all time
Speaker 4: anecdotes through the recollections and memories of those who lived
Speaker 4: it or, in my case, those who covered it. My
Speaker 4: name is Paul Calvic, Cardinals sideline reporter. Kurt Warner was
Speaker 4: done more than once until he wasn't until he earned
Speaker 4: one more chance and deliver he did.
Speaker 6: There is nothing greater in team sports than being able
Speaker 6: to be a catalyst for change.
Speaker 12: We're nobody else believed in us. We're nobody else believed
Speaker 12: in me. You guys did, and we're going to the
Speaker 12: Super Bowl.
Speaker 1: Give them that gold jacket they get when they go
Speaker 1: to the Hall of Fame.
Speaker 6: I hope to have another chapter here that can weigh
Speaker 6: evenly with what I did in Saint Louis, And that's
Speaker 6: really the objective and why I came here had to
Speaker 6: do all about the Arizona Cardinals and what they're trying
Speaker 6: to do here.
Speaker 4: In March of two thousand and five, the only one
Speaker 4: who truly believed Kurt Warner would come anywhere close to
Speaker 4: his Saint Louis Rams glory was Kurt himself. He inked
Speaker 4: a one year, four million dollar deal at age thirty three,
Speaker 4: his third team in three years. Kurt was fresh off
Speaker 4: losing his job in New York to rookie Eli Manning.
Speaker 4: In fact, his last game as a starter was against
Speaker 4: the Cardinals, where Kurt was sacked how many times at
Speaker 4: Sun Devil Stadium.
Speaker 3: It comes a blitz and Warner is sick again by Berry.
Speaker 3: Four sacks for bertrand Berry six for the Cardinals Today.
Speaker 4: Wellp if you can't beat them, join them. Kirk played
Speaker 4: in ten games in two thousand and five. The Cardinals
Speaker 4: went to and eight in those games during a five
Speaker 4: and eleven season, Kurt throwing for eleven touchdowns nine picks
Speaker 4: before his season was cut short by injury. Former Cardinals
Speaker 4: head coach Dennis Green.
Speaker 10: Well, he got MCL ligament early in the game. That's
Speaker 10: the type of injury that's four to six weeks maybe
Speaker 10: without an operation, or sometimes it has to be operated
Speaker 10: on also, so he'll basically be out for the rest
Speaker 10: of the season.
Speaker 4: Before the knee injury, though, there were moments where Kurt
Speaker 4: was surgical, especially when throwing to his two Pro Bowl
Speaker 4: wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Ankwan Bolden back to.
Speaker 3: Throw Warner a screen to Bolton over the middle, cut
Speaker 3: of the ten bolding of the five breaks attack with
Speaker 3: the two head Bolden's in touchdown Lorner with a five
Speaker 3: step drop lobs over the middle.
Speaker 5: Fitzgerald leaps got it touchdown.
Speaker 4: Cardinals. Both fitz and Ankwon had one hundred plus catches
Speaker 4: and over fourteen hundred yards receiving a piece, so Kurt's
Speaker 4: expectations were high for the two thousand and six season
Speaker 4: until April rolled around.
Speaker 3: With the tenth choice in the two thousand and six
Speaker 3: NFL Draft, the Arizona Cardinals select Matt Lioner quarterback Ussam.
Speaker 6: When we drafted Matt, that was the first thing that
Speaker 6: went through my mind, is like, is this it for me?
Speaker 6: You know, will even get a chance to compete moving forward,
Speaker 6: and if I don't compete here, you know, what are
Speaker 6: the chances that, you know, somebody else picks me up
Speaker 6: and I get another opportunity.
Speaker 4: Kurt got his chance, his opportunity to stay the starter.
Speaker 4: Week one, two thousand and six was game one in
Speaker 4: the history of State Farm Stadium, and Kurt played so
Speaker 4: well he was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week.
Speaker 4: Alas it did not last Week two in Seattle, sacked
Speaker 4: five times plus four Kurt bumbles, even though he didn't
Speaker 4: lose any. Then back home Week three against Saint Louis,
Speaker 4: Kurt was picked three times.
Speaker 3: Warner takes back to throw, has time, fires over the middle,
Speaker 3: tipped and it is going to be intercepted at the
Speaker 3: five yard line by a Toadway sends it over the
Speaker 3: middle and it is going to be picked off at
Speaker 3: the forty five yard line.
Speaker 4: Great diving interception.
Speaker 3: Warner in the pocket, fires over the middle, picked off,
Speaker 3: intercepted in the end zone by the Rams dexter Cokeley.
Speaker 3: He takes a knee and the Ram we'll have the
Speaker 3: football at their twenty yard line. Third pick of the
Speaker 3: day by Kurt Warner. A nightmare game that just kept
Speaker 3: getting worse. Warner under center, and he.
Speaker 8: Fumbled the ball. They fumbled the step and the Rams
Speaker 8: have it.
Speaker 4: At the seventeen. Will Witherspoon comes up with it for
Speaker 4: Saint Louis. Do you believe that?
Speaker 1: Boy? This is one of those games where it's gonna
Speaker 1: leave a mark.
Speaker 4: A faithful fumble that looked bad and sounded worse when
Speaker 4: Kurt heard it from the Red Sea.
Speaker 6: I got boot out of the stadium.
Speaker 8: Kurt Warner the final fumble there, What did you see
Speaker 8: from where you were at?
Speaker 10: Just bumbled it? Quarterback in the center. We're not together,
Speaker 10: you know, and it's hard to say why. We had
Speaker 10: a couple of miscues in warm up, which you know,
Speaker 10: sent me off my rocker to a certain extent, and
Speaker 10: I yelled at the guys a little bit.
Speaker 1: I remember that play and it was the left guard
Speaker 1: pulling that actually knocked the ball out of Kurt Warner's hands.
Speaker 1: Kurt Warner never told anybody about and everyone was asking
Speaker 1: in the media, why why did you say anything about that?
Speaker 1: And Kurt said, remember, it's always the quarterback's fault.
Speaker 4: That's Cardinal's longtime radio analyst Ron Wolfoy, and quarterbacks know
Speaker 4: there's truth to that old saying that QB's get too
Speaker 4: much credit and too much Blaine And in my postgame
Speaker 4: interview with the head coach it was about to be
Speaker 4: the ladder.
Speaker 8: Is there anything in particular going on you think with Kurt?
Speaker 10: I don't know.
Speaker 1: I mean, I hope not.
Speaker 10: I mean I think that we've just got out and played.
Speaker 10: Here's some things that took place that were very well
Speaker 10: and some things that didn't. So obviously we're not all
Speaker 10: on the same page.
Speaker 4: Foreshadowing because by the next game at Atlanta, Denny Green
Speaker 4: was ready to turn the page.
Speaker 3: Warner takes the snap, seven steps straight drop, pressure coming,
Speaker 3: Warner rolling right, sack of the Ball's lost at the
Speaker 3: twenty five and the Landa recovers in the twenty one,
Speaker 3: Michael Bowley stripped it and Rob Pullman recovers it another calm.
Speaker 3: Kurt Warner is ten in the last three games and
Speaker 3: Atlanta tanks over.
Speaker 4: The ball came out and so did Warner. Q the
Speaker 4: Heisman Trophy winner the.
Speaker 3: Matt Lionert era about to begin. Linert ready to take
Speaker 3: his first NFL snap.
Speaker 4: Cardinals still lose thirty two to ten, as Liner didn't
Speaker 4: fare much better than Warner bought, let there be a
Speaker 4: QB question.
Speaker 3: You have a quarterback controversy. Who's your starter next week
Speaker 3: against Kansas City.
Speaker 4: Well, in the postgame locker room, we asked Liner live
Speaker 4: on air.
Speaker 8: What do you know about the quarterback situation going forward?
Speaker 4: Now?
Speaker 9: Oh, I don't know anything. I'm just gonna be ready
Speaker 9: to play whenever I.
Speaker 10: Came Matti start next week. Matt stun.
Speaker 4: You heard that right? The head coach bum rushed our
Speaker 4: interview just outside his office in the Georgia Dome, grabbed
Speaker 4: the mic and name Matt the starter on live radio.
Speaker 6: You know, as much and as disappointing as that kind
Speaker 6: of scenario is, at the same time, you say to yourself,
Speaker 6: but I signed up be a part of Arizona Cardinals,
Speaker 6: and my job is not to just be a good
Speaker 6: teammates and to help this team win. If I'm starting,
Speaker 6: my job is to do whatever I can as a
Speaker 6: teammate in Arizona Cardinal to help this team win, no
Speaker 6: matter what my role is.
Speaker 4: And Warner the mentor, was all too familiar with that role.
Speaker 6: You know, I'd been there before, you know, Mark Roger
Speaker 6: in Saint Louis, Eli, Manning in New York now Matt
Speaker 6: Leonard in Arizona. I knew how to do that. As
Speaker 6: hard as it was, that became my role.
Speaker 10: I think he's done a good job, as well as
Speaker 10: you can do. I mean, I think that there are
Speaker 10: a few veterans Kurt, you know, Bleds, a few other
Speaker 10: guys that have been around the league a long time
Speaker 10: have been major contributors to the National Football League, and we're,
Speaker 10: you know, put in a situation where they became backups.
Speaker 10: And Kurt's got a great attitude. He's a tremendous guy,
Speaker 10: and I thought he handled it well.
Speaker 4: So even in the face of NonStop change throughout two
Speaker 4: thousand and six, from losing fumbles to lose in his
Speaker 4: starting job, Kurt never lost his signature faith.
Speaker 6: Always in the back of my mind, I never lost
Speaker 6: hope that I still believe I will be the best
Speaker 6: quarterback here. I don't know what that means, but every time,
Speaker 6: you know, throughout my career, the cream will always rise
Speaker 6: to the top. The best player will show himself at
Speaker 6: some point and it will be hard to deny that
Speaker 6: person an opportunity to see what they can do. And
Speaker 6: that's how I always, you know, went through my entire career.
Speaker 4: And Kurt's career was about to get yet another reboot.
Speaker 4: All that changed last off season, well more change was
Speaker 4: coming in two thousand and seven in more ways than one,
Speaker 4: and whether it was a new start or a late start,
Speaker 4: because remember Kurt Warner didn't get his first NFL start
Speaker 4: until age twenty eight. Kurt handled change in the NFL
Speaker 4: like he excelled against a blitzing NFL defense. Was at
Speaker 4: his best when it was time to read and react.
Speaker 4: So in two thousand and seven, with a new coach,
Speaker 4: a new offense, a new attitude, and overall a new
Speaker 4: culture straight ahead, this was nothing new for Kurt. Heck,
Speaker 4: in some ways, change itself was Warner's competitive advantage, and
Speaker 4: the more eyes on Kurt, the more he seemed to
Speaker 4: separate himself because make no mistake, Kurt was a quarterback
Speaker 4: who'd been there, done that at the highest level. And
Speaker 4: now it was a Cardinals.
Speaker 13: Team that needed exactly that that role model, a team
Speaker 13: that had talent but needed direction, cohesion, not necessarily a
Speaker 13: cheat code, but someone to hit the reset button.
Speaker 4: And what ensued the shock the world Cardinals, and perhaps
Speaker 4: the only person that did not shock was the guy
Speaker 4: under center who was at the center of it all.
Speaker 4: So when we come back, how would Kurt cope with
Speaker 4: another first round pick in his career path and how
Speaker 4: the end of one season would lead to the postseason.
Speaker 4: You're listening to a special Cardinals Folktales edition of The
Speaker 4: Big Red Rage Kurt Warner renaissance Man, presented by Emergency Air,
Speaker 4: and we hope you're enjoying this special Cardinals Folk Tales
Speaker 4: edition of The Big Red Rage presented by Emergency Air.
Speaker 4: On Paul calvic Our title, Kurt Warner renaissance Man went
Speaker 4: the Hall of Fame quarterback not only resuscitated his own career,
Speaker 4: but led a revival of the Cardinals. Of course, it
Speaker 4: wasn't easy. Couldn't be easy. Like Kurt's career itself, there
Speaker 4: was always a degree of difficulty, whether it was injury
Speaker 4: or age, or a first round quarterback to compete against,
Speaker 4: or a new coach to convince. And make no mistake,
Speaker 4: Kurt had to battle all of the above going into
Speaker 4: two thousand and seven. But remember back in nineteen ninety nine,
Speaker 4: years after Kurt mad cut by the Packers. After the
Speaker 4: Rams would then sign him as a fourth quarterback to
Speaker 4: compete for the third quarterback spot. Kurt would start the
Speaker 4: season opener after a devastating preseason injury just starter Trent Green,
Speaker 4: and Kurt would become the first player in NFL history
Speaker 4: to throw three touchdown passes in each of his first
Speaker 4: three starts, got in a four win team to a
Speaker 4: thirteen and three record and the Super Bowl title. Kurt Warner,
Speaker 4: the former camp arm was NFL MVP, but that was
Speaker 4: three teams ago and five years removed from Kurt's last
Speaker 4: Pro Bowl. So as we rejoined Cardinals folktales, it's the
Speaker 4: off season after the firing of Cardinals head coach Dennis Green.
Speaker 4: The new Cardinals coach in town entering seven put the
Speaker 4: no into no nonsense on behalf of the Arizona Cardinals.
Speaker 3: I want to introduce our new headfoot well coach Ken
Speaker 3: wizen Hunt.
Speaker 11: Young quarterbacks that have a bright future like he does,
Speaker 11: are hard to find. You know, they don't grow on trees,
Speaker 11: so that's an exciting part of this organization.
Speaker 4: Certainly, meet the new boss, same as the old boss,
Speaker 4: not exactly. New head coach Ken wizon On a Super
Speaker 4: Bowl winning offensive coordinator from the Steelers, where he played
Speaker 4: a big part in developing big Ben Young, Ben Roethlisberger,
Speaker 4: akin to the Cardinals drafting Matt Liner.
Speaker 11: You've got a high pick in the first round at
Speaker 11: a quarterback, and that's always something that has great value
Speaker 11: to a team. But I think one of the things
Speaker 11: that you always have to be prepared for is who's
Speaker 11: your backup. And having a veteran backup, a guy with
Speaker 11: the experience of Kurt Warner, it was something that I
Speaker 11: felt was a good thing that would be a good
Speaker 11: environment for a young quarterback to learn and grow.
Speaker 6: I thought Matt actually played really well his rookie year.
Speaker 6: Even though we didn't win any games, he played some
Speaker 6: really good football, so you know he was playing well,
Speaker 6: but there was just something missing. I felt I was
Speaker 6: that something missing, that I had something different that I
Speaker 6: could lend to this team to help us get over
Speaker 6: the top. It was just a matter of whether I
Speaker 6: was going to have the opportunity to show that Kurt
Speaker 6: would have.
Speaker 4: That opportunity eventually. Matt Leinert started the two thousand and
Speaker 4: seven season opener, a three point loss at San Francisco.
Speaker 4: Week two at home against Seattle, a three point win
Speaker 4: where Liner threw for nearly three hundred yards, which takes
Speaker 4: us to week three when midway through the second.
Speaker 3: Quarter, we have a quarterback change. We'll confirm whether this
Speaker 3: is injury related or not. But Matt Lioner's got his
Speaker 3: helmet on and he's applauding as Kurt Warner runs onto
Speaker 3: the field. Your thoughts on this decision?
Speaker 11: Wolf, Wow, we started running some no huddle offense and
Speaker 11: we kind of let Kurt take the reins with that
Speaker 11: just because he had more experience. Matt did it, but
Speaker 11: you know, obviously checks at the line, communication with players,
Speaker 11: you know, those were things that you just didn't want
Speaker 11: to put on Matt's play.
Speaker 6: You know, if there's anything that I do, well, let's
Speaker 6: drop back and throw the football and be able to
Speaker 6: you know, kind of run the show at the line
Speaker 6: of scrimmage. And so they were giving me an opportunity
Speaker 6: to show everybody what I was capable of, even if
Speaker 6: it was for two minutes here or three minutes there,
Speaker 6: or the end of the half or whatever that was.
Speaker 6: I was going in to do what I did.
Speaker 3: Warner back to throw and has passed over the middle,
Speaker 3: Cort boldon forty yard line, forty five midfield and finally
Speaker 3: wrapped up with the forty five in Baltimore Territory.
Speaker 1: Oh boy, welcome to the ball game. Kurt Warner lit
Speaker 1: up like Jojo the circus boy, and yet stands there
Speaker 1: and throws the ball on time.
Speaker 4: That was Kurt's very first play, thirty seven yards da
Speaker 4: in Kwon Bolden. Kurt was cooking, but there was still
Speaker 4: confusion as to why there were two chefs in the
Speaker 4: kitchen until we got the scoop down on the sideline.
Speaker 4: Let's end some speculation because coach Ken wizen On telling
Speaker 4: the sideline reporters at halftime that the appearance of Kurt
Speaker 4: Warner was part of a packet. As he called it,
Speaker 4: those are his words. He said, It'd be similar to
Speaker 4: as if you would bring in two tight ends. He
Speaker 4: likened it to a two tight end set. It was
Speaker 4: by design and it was planned, according to head coach
Speaker 4: Ken Wizna. In the third quarter, Liner played almost one
Speaker 4: hundred percent of the snaps, bought down twenty three to six.
Speaker 4: To start the fourth, Warner checked in and clicked in
Speaker 4: to MVP mode.
Speaker 3: Warner takes the snap, drops the throw, pumps fires over
Speaker 3: the middle touchdown, and Kwan Boulden and the Cardinals had
Speaker 3: their first TV of the game.
Speaker 1: That was a great job by Kurt Warner of looking
Speaker 1: off the receiver.
Speaker 3: And credit the Cardinals coaching staffer sticking with right now
Speaker 3: the guy that gives them the best chance to move
Speaker 3: the ball, Kurt Warner.
Speaker 4: Kurt did really well with that.
Speaker 11: You know, he was a naturally, he had the experience,
Speaker 11: so it really kind of got your attention. Wow, this
Speaker 11: guy still got some juice, you know, and he can help.
Speaker 3: Us the temple. You can tell even though they're going
Speaker 3: no huddle is better. Even Warner on his drops quicker
Speaker 3: dropping back to throw the liner was shotgun snapped to Warner,
Speaker 3: three step drough looking firing over the middle.
Speaker 8: Bolton there Cock.
Speaker 5: Ten five folder down.
Speaker 3: It's a touchdown for a quand Bolden and here come
Speaker 3: the Cardinals and Kurt Warner.
Speaker 1: Oh, that was a big time throw by Warner.
Speaker 3: Kurt Warner brings the Cardinals back from the dead within
Speaker 3: three of Baltimore. Kurt Warner on the last two drives
Speaker 3: seven for seven, two touchdowns, both to number eighty one.
Speaker 1: Kurt Warner is a six to sixth man right now,
Speaker 1: he is in the zone.
Speaker 4: Kurt Warner is balling.
Speaker 6: The positive for me was I got to play in
Speaker 6: the two minute offense. Like when I went in, it
Speaker 6: was the no huddle offense, and I got to run
Speaker 6: the show. And so you know, not only you know,
Speaker 6: was it probably a little bit unfair to Matt, but
Speaker 6: it allowed me to go, Okay, I get to show
Speaker 6: you me at my best.
Speaker 4: Cardinals didn't get the win, ultimately falling in Baltimore by
Speaker 4: a fuel goal, but did they find the winning formula.
Speaker 1: Anytime you're working two quarterbacks into the situation, you know
Speaker 1: a change is coming.
Speaker 4: That next week, Warner and Lionerd split time in a
Speaker 4: win against Pittsburgh. Next stop Saint Louis. Mid second quarter,
Speaker 4: Kurt leads a touchdown drive the next possession, though would
Speaker 4: be Linerd's last. In two thousand and seven, play fake
Speaker 4: Lionar did trouble Lionard sack back in the.
Speaker 5: Five yard line.
Speaker 3: They got drilled by Will Witherspoon, who came out of
Speaker 3: delayed to blitz and Lionard fanged up. He's gonna have
Speaker 3: to leave the game, Lioner calling to the sideline for
Speaker 3: Kurt Warner, and Horner's gonna find his helmet now. He
Speaker 3: comes running out of the field with a play clock
Speaker 3: already at twenty five seconds, they're working on Linerd's left shoulder.
Speaker 1: You know the way Matt Lioner came down on that
Speaker 1: shoulder too, which is his throwing shoulder. He came down
Speaker 1: on that thing hard.
Speaker 3: Yeah, right away he went and grabbed the shoulder as
Speaker 3: soon as he was slammed down.
Speaker 4: Boy, you don't like to see that right there. The
Speaker 4: headline is gonna read Kurt Warner back in Saint Louis.
Speaker 4: Looks like the rest of this game, maybe the rest
Speaker 4: of the foreseeable future. Left collarbone injury on Matt liner
Speaker 4: is the official word. Return doubtful.
Speaker 11: We missed a pick up on a pressure against the
Speaker 11: Rams I think it was, and knocked Matt out. When
Speaker 11: that happened, it was, you know, obviously a setback for Matt,
Speaker 11: but we thought, well, now we're going to see about
Speaker 11: Kurt just in being able to run the offense. Which
Speaker 11: you know, that's the reason that you feel comfortable about
Speaker 11: having a guy like that is because of his experience.
Speaker 11: So when that happened, we were disappointed for Matt, but
Speaker 11: you know, obviously we felt good about Kurt.
Speaker 6: I know as well as anybody. I got an opportunity
Speaker 6: because somebody got injured, and you never wish that upon anybody,
Speaker 6: but obviously, you know, going too Saint Louis and Matt
Speaker 6: suffering the separated shoulder, was that opportunity for me to
Speaker 6: get back in there and kind of run the show again.
Speaker 4: Of course, it wasn't without its challenges, like the very
Speaker 4: next against Carolina and Pro Bowl pass rusher Julius Peppers.
Speaker 3: Back to throat goes Warner, pressure and fubble the ball.
Speaker 3: Pepper sacked him and the balls lose and Peppers has
Speaker 3: it at the thirty seventy yard line and Peppers fell
Speaker 3: on Warner's left arm, and Warner shaking his elbow as
Speaker 3: he came off.
Speaker 11: You know, he was convinced that he could still play,
Speaker 11: and that's the reason he's in the Hall of Fame
Speaker 11: because of that mentality. He believed in himself and you
Speaker 11: know he certainly backed it up.
Speaker 4: Just talk to the Cardinals coaches. Kurt Warner is the
Speaker 4: starter today, Guys, full go until he shows he can't
Speaker 4: handle the pain. Essentially, he is going to do everything
Speaker 4: they possibly have in the playbook as if he was
Speaker 4: fully healthy until he demonstrates otherwise. In fact, look for
Speaker 4: him to hand the ball off exclusively with his right hand.
Speaker 4: He'll be backhanding some of the handoffs just to keep
Speaker 4: some of the strain off the left arm.
Speaker 1: The number one prerequisite to playing that position, you had
Speaker 1: to be tough. You would not be able to play
Speaker 1: it well if you are not a tough individual. But
Speaker 1: he was tall.
Speaker 11: There was no way that you were going to get
Speaker 11: him out, you know, even with the elbow. And it's
Speaker 11: a credit to his toughness and his drive and his competitiveness.
Speaker 1: You got a guy with no tendon in his left elbow,
Speaker 1: with tape jobs and braces that he's completing fastest.
Speaker 4: Kirk played every game the rest of the way in
Speaker 4: seven and finished the last month on fire, throwing three
Speaker 4: touchdown passes in each of the final four games.
Speaker 11: In the last half of that two thousand and seven season,
Speaker 11: we kind of honed in on what he did well,
Speaker 11: what we did well, and we became a lot better
Speaker 11: as a team. We finished the year, you know, eight
Speaker 11: and eight, which was big for us.
Speaker 6: Things started to change for us that people started to
Speaker 6: see me as the player that I was, and people
Speaker 6: started to see our team and saying, this team's got
Speaker 6: some pieces, this team's got a chance. You know now
Speaker 6: that they you know, they're starting to build something that
Speaker 6: you know, they could turn the corner and this could
Speaker 6: be a different Arizona Cardinal team than we've seen in
Speaker 6: the bass. You know, I remember going in and having
Speaker 6: a conversation with coach just basically saying, is this at
Speaker 6: OVID competition? Is the best player going to play? How
Speaker 6: is this you know, really going to play out? I
Speaker 6: just want to know for my mindset going in, do
Speaker 6: I have a chance to play? And he told me yes.
Speaker 11: We thought because of the way we finished the two
Speaker 11: thousand and seven season that it was fair to give
Speaker 11: him a chance. It was good to see how they
Speaker 11: handled it. It was good to see how the competition went,
Speaker 11: and you know, in all fairness, Kurt won it.
Speaker 4: And the decisive moment was the all important third preseason
Speaker 4: game when Liner threw three picks with a passer rating
Speaker 4: of just two point eight, soon after Warner went from
Speaker 4: mentor to starter.
Speaker 9: You know, it was a fair chance.
Speaker 8: I believe.
Speaker 9: I really do believe that, and I think we both
Speaker 9: played well and they made a decision with Kurt. That's
Speaker 9: as simple as that. And it's my job to stay
Speaker 9: focused and to prepare every single day, like I'm the starter.
Speaker 9: That's what I'm going to do, take advantage of the
Speaker 9: reps when I do get it, and support him one
Speaker 9: hundred percent.
Speaker 6: Believe that I can bring something to any team that
Speaker 6: I'm with. I believe I can do that with this
Speaker 6: team here. I think the coaches have seen that, and
Speaker 6: with that experience in what we started last year, I
Speaker 6: think that probably gave me the leg up over anything.
Speaker 4: Up and down would describe the two thousand and eight
Speaker 4: regular season. Kirk had a perfect passer rating Week two
Speaker 4: against the Dolphins. Cardinals won an ot thriller against the
Speaker 4: Cowboys on a block punt in the end zone. Cardinals
Speaker 4: would clinch a division title early, but down the stretch
Speaker 4: there was a lopside of loss at Philly on Thanksgiving night,
Speaker 4: a snow game, jack stomping in New England, leading to
Speaker 4: that worst playoff team ever Moniker. But Kurt Warner would
Speaker 4: finish with the third best passer rating in the league,
Speaker 4: loss three one thousand yard receivers, and once the Big
Speaker 4: Red got to the postseason, well, like Ron Wolfley says,
Speaker 4: hold onto your butts, it's.
Speaker 3: A play flicker, Warner gonna throw deep near side, going
Speaker 3: for fans.
Speaker 4: He's in double coverage.
Speaker 6: It doesn't matter.
Speaker 5: He caught it anyway. Touchdown Cardinals.
Speaker 1: Kurt Warner could throw a twinkie into a toaster. I mean,
Speaker 1: this guy is on fire.
Speaker 3: Warner with a ton of time throwing right.
Speaker 5: Side, fits open, caught in the five, heading for the.
Speaker 2: Pylon, and he is gonna be ruled EO Tordinals worry Fitzgerald.
Speaker 4: Warner takes back to throw faith left side.
Speaker 3: Fitzgerald pick on it, touchdown, his third of the day.
Speaker 4: It's twenty to six Arizona.
Speaker 1: Wow, Kurt Warner isn't in the zone. He is the zone.
Speaker 6: That's it.
Speaker 4: The Cordinals half shot the world.
Speaker 5: It's right for true. The Cords have done.
Speaker 6: They're going to Super Bowl forty three.
Speaker 4: The QB, who was supposedly on the down side of
Speaker 4: his career, showed the world how much upside there really
Speaker 4: was in his game and his team.
Speaker 12: We're nobody else believed in us. We're nobody else believed
Speaker 12: in me. You guys did, and we're going to the
Speaker 12: super Bowl.
Speaker 4: A surreal moment because unlike the Cardinals franchise, Kurt he'd
Speaker 4: been to the Big Game before twice, a fact not
Speaker 4: lost on fans, opponents, and most importantly his old mocker room.
Speaker 4: They believe, like Olyman dous Lutwy and receiver Larry Fitzgerald.
Speaker 7: The threat he imposed upon the defense. I mean he
Speaker 7: had them on their toes and he saw the magnificence.
Speaker 7: I mean he changed the team mentality inside out.
Speaker 14: His experience, his knowledge of the game. He knows exactly
Speaker 14: what's going on. It's hard for you to confuse him
Speaker 14: because he's seen every look you can throw at him.
Speaker 14: He's seen every blitz. His demeanors is so I've been
Speaker 14: there before, I've done this, and he is really comforting
Speaker 14: to look in his eyes and know that he's done
Speaker 14: this before, and now you've got to do out to
Speaker 14: go out there and just.
Speaker 5: Make sure you do your job.
Speaker 3: Warner, the pass with time fires over the middle of
Speaker 3: the fits caught it to forty five fifth day, but
Speaker 3: this this forty thirty goodbye, Hargos lead put down where it,
Speaker 3: ben Gerald, you.
Speaker 1: Gotta be kidding me. To the holl Larry.
Speaker 3: Fitzgerald a sixty four yard touchdown pass by Warner to
Speaker 3: Mitch Gerald and the Cardinals lead Super Bowl forty three.
Speaker 4: Of course, that's Kurt defits with just over two and
Speaker 4: a half minutes to play. As we know how that
Speaker 4: Super Bowl ended, what we did not know was that
Speaker 4: Kurt was not done and he'd yet to play maybe
Speaker 4: his greatest game ever.
Speaker 3: Here comes one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL postseason history,
Speaker 3: and that's the Cardinals signal caller, Kurt Warner.
Speaker 6: I think about the last game that I played in
Speaker 6: State Farm Stadium or University of Phoenix Stadium. You could
Speaker 6: argue it was the best football game that I ever played.
Speaker 3: Fires over the middle, Let's caught inside the ten yard
Speaker 3: line inside the five touchdown early set, Warner's got times
Speaker 3: s deps up throws over the middle, gets popped by
Speaker 3: two set at the ten, spins out of a tack
Speaker 3: with the five, and new Son takes it up for
Speaker 3: the touchdown. Throwing over the middle, Fitzgerald wide over to
Speaker 3: the twenty.
Speaker 5: Most of the ten fits is.
Speaker 4: On wherey legend does it again.
Speaker 3: In the playoff, warnerhead ball floats out of their diving
Speaker 3: cats anyway by Beds.
Speaker 4: In the hands off touchdown.
Speaker 3: Warner's got it back to pass steps up throws over
Speaker 3: the middle.
Speaker 1: What a catch by chrestap touchdown. Arizona boy, I'll tell
Speaker 1: you he has been absolutely on fire, like I've never
Speaker 1: seen him on fire.
Speaker 8: Kurt Warner. He had more touchdown passes than he did incompletions.
Speaker 8: Can you put his performance into perspective?
Speaker 11: One of the best playoff quarterbacks ever, and Kurt was
Speaker 11: in a special place and it showed up today. You
Speaker 11: know he was on he was on his game, he
Speaker 11: was fired up.
Speaker 4: Kurt's last home game one of the greatest playoff performances
Speaker 4: ever and maybe his best game ever, where the Cardinals
Speaker 4: beat the Packers in overtime.
Speaker 6: I think I played as good a football those three
Speaker 6: years with the Arizona Cardinals as I did those three
Speaker 6: years with the Saint Louis Rams. And yes, I went
Speaker 6: to two Super Bowls and won two MVPs with the Rams,
Speaker 6: but I still believed in my mind, I was just
Speaker 6: as good a quarterback, if not better, with the Cardinals.
Speaker 4: Those MVPs and Super Bowls led to the Cardinals Ring
Speaker 4: of Honor and the Pro Football Hall of Fame, not
Speaker 4: possible without his career revival in the Desert.
Speaker 6: I love the way my career played out. Very few
Speaker 6: quarterbacks are able to go from place to place to
Speaker 6: place and to have winning and to have culture change
Speaker 6: follow them. That to me is what I hang on
Speaker 6: to more than anything else.
Speaker 4: And there you have it. Cardinals Folk Tales presented by
Speaker 4: seventy two sold Kurt Warner Renaissance Man Special thanks to
Speaker 4: executive producer Jim Almalhundro Associate producer Cody Fincher. My name
Speaker 4: is Paul Calvic and we'll leave the last word to
Speaker 4: Kurt on what stands out the most.
Speaker 6: There is nothing greater in team sports than being able
Speaker 6: to be a catalyst for.
Speaker 5: Change and to think.
Speaker 4: Kurt admitted later that he considered retirement in two thousand
Speaker 4: and six after first round rookie Matt Liner took over
Speaker 4: the starting gig. Yet when Kurt did retire after the
Speaker 4: nine season, he held the Cardinals franchise records for completion
Speaker 4: percentage and passer rating, as well as three hundred yard
Speaker 4: games and consecutive games with a touchdown pass twenty two
Speaker 4: in a row. In his six Cardinals postseason games, Kurt
Speaker 4: Warner threw four to sixteen touchdowns in only four picks
Speaker 4: and Yes, Kurt's two thousand and eight Super Bowl season
Speaker 4: featured team records in passer rating and touchdown passes and
Speaker 4: completion percentage, and all told, Kurt actually threw four more
Speaker 4: passing yards in Arizona than he did in Saint Louis.
Speaker 4: But Kurt's impact went so far beyond the box score.
Speaker 4: As a Cardinal, Kurt earned the NFL's prestigious Walter Payton
Speaker 4: Mann of the Year Award, deservedly sold for all his
Speaker 4: extensive work in the community. But if there was an
Speaker 4: award for culture, Kurt's leadership in the locker room. His
Speaker 4: impact throughout the Cardinals organization was poignant and pivotal to
Speaker 4: the Cardinals' success ever since. Almost a permanent Big Red Reset.
Speaker 4: And when we come back, we'll bring back former Cardinals
Speaker 4: Pro bowl a Ron Wolfley, who called every game of
Speaker 4: Kurt Warner's Cardinals career. This is a special Cardinals Folk
Speaker 4: Tales edition of The Big Red Rage, presented by Emergency Air.
Speaker 4: The legacy of Kurt Warner, the Ring of Honor, member
Speaker 4: of the Hall of Famer, not only changed the culture,
Speaker 4: but he changed the game in so many ways for
Speaker 4: the as a Cardinals. It's our very special Cardinals Folk
Speaker 4: Tales edition of The Big Red Rage, presented by Emergency Air.
Speaker 4: Paul kelvc Ron Wolfley for wrapping it up. Think about
Speaker 4: a wolf He was the point man, the trigger man
Speaker 4: for the greatest show on turf, and then he was
Speaker 4: the trigger man, the catalyst for change. That was the
Speaker 4: shock the world Cardinals. Kurt Warner didn't just lead to
Speaker 4: franchises to the Super Bowl. He really revolutionized and reset
Speaker 4: a couple of franchises into winning ways that were lasting.
Speaker 4: In so many ways.
Speaker 1: He really did bully And you know, of course, there
Speaker 1: are always when you talk about a football player, tangibles
Speaker 1: and there are intangibles, and Kurt had them both. The tangible,
Speaker 1: very tangible physical presence that Kurt had because of his
Speaker 1: incredible accuracy, he was one of the more accurate quarterbacks
Speaker 1: that has ever played in the National Football League. His
Speaker 1: release to Paulli Boom, that thing would come out quickly
Speaker 1: from Kurt Warner in not only that, but his brain.
Speaker 1: Those were the physical attributes of Kurt. Those were the
Speaker 1: things he really brought to the football field. But the
Speaker 1: intangibles that came with that. Paulie, he had one of
Speaker 1: the greatest gifts that any quarterback could ever have, and
Speaker 1: that was to keep your eyes down the field, regardless
Speaker 1: of what it was going on around you. Paul, I'll
Speaker 1: never forget that. Just watching Kurt, it was astounding. And
Speaker 1: I've said this many times, Paulie, but to see the
Speaker 1: pocket collapsing around Kurt Warner and suddenly you thought he
Speaker 1: was sacked. And then this arm would come out, and Paul,
Speaker 1: you've seen this from the sideline many times. This arm
Speaker 1: would come out from all of these helmets that were
Speaker 1: around him and suddenly throw a strike on the deep
Speaker 1: end coming into and Kwombolden. His ability to keep his
Speaker 1: eyes downfield just second to none, Paul.
Speaker 4: The pocket would swallow up Kurt Warner, and then this
Speaker 4: periscope would come out like a submarine and then boom,
Speaker 4: the ball's downfield. The accuracy, the anticipation, the ability to
Speaker 4: read and react, all skills honed in the Arena League
Speaker 4: ultra fast. You had to be really quick with your
Speaker 4: mind and with the release. Think about some of the
Speaker 4: all time moments too, not just the biggest moments. We
Speaker 4: talked about the five touchdowns and only four incompletions out
Speaker 4: dueling in Aaron Rodgers. We talked about that, the Super
Speaker 4: Bowl run, But don't forget about late fourth quarter playoff
Speaker 4: opener against Atlanta third and sixteen. Roun Wolfleo, when you're
Speaker 4: looking to seal the game.
Speaker 1: Incredible Balie that you bring that up right there, because yes,
Speaker 1: this is when I think of Kurt Warner. I think
Speaker 1: of this play as well. This was a critical point
Speaker 1: in the game. The Cardinals were trying to ice the deal.
Speaker 1: They had a third and sixteen. Is that what it was?
Speaker 1: Polly again, a third and sixteen, and suddenly they run
Speaker 1: Steven Spock the tight end. Now Steven Spock was good
Speaker 1: football player, Okay he was, but man, this was no
Speaker 1: This was no juggernaut when it came to receptions and
Speaker 1: kwon Bolden Yes, Larry Fitzgerald, yes, Steve Breston, Yes, you
Speaker 1: know Steven Spock.
Speaker 4: No, not a third string tight end exactly.
Speaker 1: And yet Kurt Warner hit him down the scene to
Speaker 1: ice this game, to put it on ice for the Cardinals.
Speaker 1: And that is that is something that Kurt also did.
Speaker 1: He would throw the ball to the open man and
Speaker 1: did not care. He cared about schemes. Kurt was all
Speaker 1: about the scheme and not just the skulls that were
Speaker 1: fulfilling the scheme. He cared about the scheme and he
Speaker 1: would throw it to the open man and because of
Speaker 1: that one of the greatest moments in Cardinal history throwing
Speaker 1: to Steven Spock on third and sixteen.
Speaker 4: It didn't get set enough. He was almost like a
Speaker 4: de facto offensive coordinator. He would work with Todd Hailey
Speaker 4: in the offensive staff in devising the game plan. They
Speaker 4: would wait for his on a Monday. And then the
Speaker 4: toughness look mentally tough, physically tough. I mean he almost
Speaker 4: got ripped apart by Julius Peppers and then all of
Speaker 4: a sudden he had to learn to hand the ball
Speaker 4: off with his throwing arm because his left arm was
Speaker 4: no longer functional. So there was the toughness aspect of
Speaker 4: being a quarterback as well.
Speaker 1: That is something that nobody talks enough about in regard
Speaker 1: to gray Beard as well. And the reason being Paully
Speaker 1: is because think of how many hits he took. Now,
Speaker 1: now you know, listen, Kurt's gonna tell you I could run,
Speaker 1: Are you kidding me? I could run?
Speaker 5: Right?
Speaker 1: Kurt still did his day, says he could have run
Speaker 1: the ball a lot more. And you know, but I
Speaker 1: don't know about that gray Beard. All I know is
Speaker 1: he took a beating many many times inside the pocket
Speaker 1: when that arm wouldn't come out.
Speaker 4: And to think his career started in Packers' training camp
Speaker 4: nineteen ninety four when his future wife Brenda watched and
Speaker 4: heard a fan say, Nah, that Kurt Warning guy's just
Speaker 4: a camp arm. And then she realized camp arm meant
Speaker 4: you're not gonna make the team. And after that he
Speaker 4: made the Hall of Fame, and he changed the fortunes
Speaker 4: of two franchises, including the Arizona Cardinals. For executive producer
Speaker 4: Jim Amhandro, associate producer Cody Fincher, Ron Wolfley on Paul
Speaker 4: calvec this has been a Cardinals Folk Tales edition of
Speaker 4: The Big Red Rage presented by Emergency Air.
Speaker 2: You've been listening to The Big Red Rage presented by
Speaker 2: Emergency Air. The difference is we care Arison dies.
Speaker 4: For the am Zone.
Speaker 5: He's in touchdown.
Speaker 2: The Rage is brought to you by Arizona Cardinals Podcast
Speaker 2: Visit Azycardinals dot com Slash Podcasts.
Speaker 1: We're gonna see a little Big Red Rage football right here.
Speaker 2: This has been an exclusive presentation of the Arizona Cardinals
Speaker 2: football Club.