Warner Agonizing Over NFL Future

NFL News - January 20th, 2010 - Written by John

Kurt Warner assured his team and anyone who would listen that he would not drag out the decision on his future with the Arizona Cardinals like so many before him had done. But after being blasted (literally) by the New Orleans Saints, he appears to be struggling with himself as tries to find a peaceful choice that he can live with.

In an interview with ESPN's Rick Reilly, via ProFootballTalk, Warner said he's still undecided on his decision, and his looking to his faith for a convincing answer.

"I pray that God takes away the desire in me to play this game," Warner told Reilly. "I've loved it for so long. I need Him to take that away from me, so that I can be comfortable with this decision."

That may never come. Few players have ever felt comfortable with the decision to step away from a game they spent their whole lives playing, whether it be injury or lack of interest from other teams. Recent sagas of Brett Favre and Junior Seau has been the center of media fodder since 2007, and have essentially forced players like Warner to make a swift decision or face scrutiny in headlines.

If Warner decides to go, he will leave behind a legacy of clutch performances in the playoffs, and currently holds the top-three passing games in Super Bowl history. That could change with the possibility of a volcanic Super Bowl match-up in two weeks, but nothing will erase the fact that Warner took two dismal franchises to the NFL championship.

He became the first quarterback to throw 100 touchdowns with two different teams and won two NFL MVP awards with the St. Louis Rams. But perhaps that's the catch-22 of success. Perhaps in the blessings he says he's received by NFL football, it has only made the end of his career more weathering.

"You feel the pressure. You have a game that isn't that great and people are like, 'What's wrong with Warner?' That wears on you. You don't have the joy and the fun and satisfaction of having one of those great games because everybody expects you to have one of those games. You never get to exhale."