Quick! We need more buildup to the NFL Draft! The top prospects do not have enough pressure on them. Will they bust or become perennial Pro Bowlers? Matt Sussman and Tuffy examine both sides of each coin, writing articles from the year 2011 "looking back" on the top 2007 draft picks. Just another reason to own a flux capacitor.
Brady Quinn The Star
MIAMI - The Miami Kid has struck again.
This time, Brady Quinn has struck the jackpot, signing a new 7-year, $225 million contract. As always, the NFL players' contract numbers are more statement than fact; Quinn will never see the last years of that deal. However, the statement is clear: Brady Quinn is the brightest star on South Beach until further notice.
When Quinn arrived in Miami after free falling to the ninth pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, he was already a polished quarterback on the field and in the media room. He knew how to flash a smile and an audible with the same genial ease. His All-American looks and Fighting Irish pedigree made him a cinch to be a familiar face before his first pro snap.
However, he was a surprisingly difficult sell in south Florida. His pale complexion and bravado defined a cocky kid not from around Miami. His initial holdout, though ended after one day of camp, did not win any instant affection.
For most fans, though, the first pass of the first preseason game was a more powerful conversion tool than Touchdown Jesus Himself. He wheeled out of the pocket, skipped past two defenders, and visibly shook his head at the second man. He then launched a Titan III from the Florida coast, 45 yards on the run, to Chris Chambers as he strode past his defender for the end zone. Miami's fans rose as one with the pass and erupted as it touched down.
The replay of the head shake dominated the game coverage and followed Quinn into post-game conference. With charm and modesty that marked his Notre Dame tenure, he downplayed the incident as misinterpreted and that he would never embarrass a fellow warrior on the field. "I'm not the most important person out there," he shrugged. "I'm just a kid right now."
The Miami Kid was born.
As he tore through the preseason competition, Brady Quinn quickly split America down a fault line. Those who couldn't stand his slick persona stood on one side; south Florida and nearly every woman in America stood slack-jawed on the other. Peyton Manning was supplanted as America's Sunday Spokesman almost instantly.
Article comments
1 - RJ
Fine writing. But more important questions need to be asked.
Does he get to bang Eva Longoria? Does he forget to "wear his helmet" and impregnate a "very special fan" like the other QB named Brady? Does he beat the Lions at home on Thanksgiving Day, causing Matt Millen to finally do the right thing by trying to eat a live land mine?
Inquiring minds want to know...
2 - Tuffy
- By 2011, Eva will be too far below him to be below him.
- Many, many times. His touch will cause women to bear his child and men to regrow their balding hair. Because of this, his center will appear to be a grizzly bear.
- No, but I like your moxie.