Former Rams QB Kurt Warner is what happens when the good guy wins

When the Los Angeles Rams left St. Louis, a legacy got left behind. Former quarterback Kurt Warner is part of that ghost that was so good for a good while.

The Los Angeles Rams exited St. Louis with a tab left to pay.

It also abandoned a passionate fan base, and a legacy, though only 20 years worth, that produced a championship, and a few National Football League Hall of Fame members.

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It also produced an unlikely, but remarkable story in this weekends newest HOF inductee: Kurtis Eugene Warner.

Full disclosure, I was never a big Warner or Rams fan. Not because he wasn’t a very good quarterback, but because he was very unassuming. He did his job, and did it very well, albeit quietly.

His career was something of a vagabonds’ approach to the HOF. Beginning at Northern Iowa, he’d rack up the frequent flier mileage with his first stop in Green Bay.

From Packer-Land, he’d find his career making stops in Des Moines, Iowa with the Barnstormers of the then Arena Football League for two season. From there, he’d head to Amsterdam for a stint with the Admirals of NFL Europe, before ending up stateside where he’d find employment with the St. Louis Rams.

That’s where the story doesn’t just take off, it’s where he’d explode onto the front of every sports page, lead Sports Center, and be the poster boy for not just believing, but persevering.

It’s also where the good guy wins.

And in this environment we find ourselves these days, the one with the guy pointing to his name on the back of his jersey, he’s a great story.

As for the numbers, until you spend a bit of time ruminating on them, they fly well below the radar. Not because they aren’t impressive and HOF worthy, but because you just don’t think of Warner and those accolades.

Super Bowl XXXIV Champion.
Super Bowl XXXIV MVP.
First Team All-Pro in 1999 and 2001.
NFL MVP in 1999 and 2001.
Walter Payton NFL Man Of The Year in 2008.
NFL Passing Yards Leader in 2001.
NFL Leader In Touchdown Passes 1999 and 2001.
First Team All-Arena 1996 and 1997.

Kurt is also in the Barnstormers’ and Arena League Hall of Fame.

In the NFL, he has a 65.5% career completion percentage. He tossed 208 touchdowns to 128 interceptions. He’d throw for 32,344 passing yards for a passer rating of 93.7%.

As an additional note, he’d take the Arizona Cardinals to a Super Bowl appearance, losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-23. Warner holds three of the top five single game passing yard totals for a Super Bowl.

Kurt Warner away from professional football is just as impressive. A Google search will tell you more than I could ever write or what hasn’t already been said.

What I’ll appreciate most about Warner’s career is his making me read about what he did again. He made me remember not to dismiss him as only a great story.

I had done just that.

Spend some time inside the numbers and outside of them, and you’ll come away feeling good about the Hall of Fame getting it right.

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In his modesty, something rare in professional sports, the greatness of his accomplishments can get overlooked. But his unassuming nature makes you appreciate what an amazing journey he had, and he’d say is still on. He’s a reminder that a good guy can not just win, but do it with remarkable grace and humility.

The NFL Hall of Fame is a better place this weekend because of him.

The Rams family is better because of him.

And we can all appreciate that.