Lock Him In

When the Arizona Cardinals got to their first Super Bowl the questions started swirling around Kurt Warner and whether he will be in Canton.

The guy has to be a Hall of Famer. There are more than a few reasons to let him in.

First off, he was the best in the league, for a period of time. One of the arguments to let someone into the Hall is that they are the best player at their position for a few seasons. Well, from 1999 until 2001, Warner was the gold standard of NFL quarterbacks. He was seen like Tom Brady or Peyton Manning are today. He even won the MVP in ’99 and ’01. That’s proof on paper.

He’s also won a Super Bowl. In ’99 he filled in for the injured Trent Green and led the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl win. It was the beginning of what coach Mike Martz coined as “the Greatest Show on Turf.” Rings are what can hold people out of the Hall, and Warner’s got one. Don’t forget that he won the Super Bowl MVP and has been to two more, where he has played pretty well.

Warner has some critiques on his resume though.

Some say he isn’t a shoe in because there were years when he struggled. In 2002, Warner only played in seven games while throwing three TDs and 11 picks. He sat most of the year because of a broken pinky on his throwing hand. The next year he only played in two games before being benched for Marc Bulger.

The next year he played for the Giants. He got benched in the middle of the year, but he was 5-4 as a starter and it was mainly because the fans wanted to see Eli Manning play. They only won one game the rest of the season.

When Warner struggled again in 2005 in Arizona, the Cards drafted Matt Leinart. However, when Leinart got hurt last year and Warner was named the full time starter, he has returned to play the way he did almost 10 years ago. The fact is that Warner didn’t have protection from the line for years. No quarterback can succeed with that. And he played hurt for a few years.

People also say that his numbers are ballooned because he has only succeeded in pass-first offenses. While he did have run support from Marshal Faulk in St. Louis, Edgerrin James hasn’t exactly been a solid back for him. Anyone who can win without a running game deserves some credit. The Cards had the lowest ranked ground attack coming into the playoffs, yet Warner still led them to the Super Bowl. Most teams today win using a balanced run-pass, but a guy who isn’t afraid to throw the ball 50 times a game should get some props.

Maybe he’s not a first ballot guy, but Warner has to get in at some point. He started his NFL career late because scouts didn’t notice him. It’s a shame they didn’t, because if he had played a full career we probably wouldn’t even be having this discussion.