People often ask me who my favorite athletes are to deal with. I always give them the same answer…there are a lot of great guys, far too many to mention. But definitely high on the list is Kurt Warner, the quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals.
A lot of athletes change over the years due to their success and wealth. Not Warner. He’s the same guy today as he was 10 years ago. He’s a devout Christian, a big family guy and very philanthropic. In fact, a couple of weeks ago, he traveled to his hometown of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to assist Habitat For Humanity in rebuilding more than 20 homes for families that had been affected by the devastating floods of 2008. He wasn’t there for just a photo-op – he got his hands dirty and worked hard like everyone else.
Warner has enjoyed a rags-to-riches career that couldn’t have been scripted any better by a Hollywood director.
After finishing his college career at Northern Iowa, Warner attended the Green Bay Packers training camp in 1994 but was released before the regular season began. It was at this point that he famously stocked shelves at a Hy-Vee grocery store in Cedar Falls, Iowa for $5.50 an hour. With no NFL teams calling, Warner played for the Iowa Barnstormers of the Arena Football League beginning in 1995. He was named to the AFL’s All-Arena first team in both 1996 and 1997 as he led the Barnstormers to Arena Bowl appearances in both seasons.
In 1998, Kurt Warner was signed by the St. Louis Rams and was allocated to the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe, where he led the league in touchdowns and passing yards. Going into the 1999 season, Warner was the Rams backup quarterback but took over the starting job when Trent Green was sidelined with an injury. The rest, as they say, is history. Warner put together one of the greatest seasons by a quarterback in NFL history, throwing for 4,353 yards with 41 touchdown passes and a completion rate of 65.1%. He went onto lead the Rams to a Super Bowl victory over the Tennessee Titans and was named both the Super Bowl MVP and NFL MVP. He became the sixth player to win both awards in the same year, joining Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana, Emmitt Smith and Steve Young.
In 2001, Kurt Warner enjoyed another career year when he led the Rams to the Super Bowl and won his second NFL MVP award. For the next several years, his career was up and down. However, last year, he returned to old form when he led the Cardinals to their first division title since 1975 and first-ever Super Bowl appearance. He recently re-signed with the Cardinals for two more years and will likely be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame after he retires.
Away from the gridiron, he’s a much sought-after Christian speaker and sports motivational speaker.
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