x
Breaking News
More () »

Kurt Warner considered being 47-year-old starting QB in 2018

"I was serious," Warner said. "If you watch my Twitter account, I said I was throwing out back, working out and throwing the football. I'm feeling good."
Kurt Warner #13 and Larry Fitzgerald #11 of the Arizona Cardinals talk on the sidelines during the game against the Denver Broncos on August 31, 2006 at Cardinals Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo: Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Former Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner retired after the 2009 season.

He is now a Hall of Famer. Now, at 46 years old, he apparently considered returning to play in the NFL in 2018.

It came up when he was interviewed during a St. Louis Cardinals game.

“I was ready for the coming season,” he said. “I actually talked to a coach, and my wife said, ‘Go for it. I think it would be great.’

“So I actually talked to a coach about possibly doing it if they needed someone, but they went out and signed someone. I don’t think they thought I was serious.”

He added to the story, appearing on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM on Tuesday.

He said his wife thought “it would be a great story” for him to return to the league nearly a decade after retiring and also after already being enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

He reiterated it never got past mentioning it to a friend of his in the coaching ranks, but did indicate it wasn’t just a passing thought.

“I was serious,” he said. “If you watch my Twitter account, I said I was throwing out back, working out and throwing the football. I’m feeling good.”

He said he would not have come back to be a backup in the league. He would want to start. “I don’t need to come back as a backup,” he said. “If I was going to try to do it, I was going to try to go somewhere where they needed a guy for a year and they transitioned or just a veteran guy to be able to lead an organization from that standpoint.”

So who were the teams who needed a quarterback and they signed one? There were the Cardinals, of course, who ultimately signed Sam Bradford. The Denver Broncos signed Case Keenum. The Buffalo Bills signed A.J. McCarron. The New York Jets signed Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgewater.

He feels good and also feels that the state of the NFL at the position isn’t great. “I think there’s so much these guys need to learn and need to understand,” he said.

Warner will be 47 in the summer. Because he left the game playing at a high level, there has to be that itch that he can still play and play at a high level again. However, he hasn’t played in nearly a decade. He hasn’t taken a hit. He hasn’t had bodies flying around his feet. He hasn’t taken a practice rep. The notion he could come back and play is absurd.

Would it be fun to watch? Certainly. But it would likely be a trainwreck waiting to happen. It is a nice thought, but a terrible idea to try and carry out.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Before You Leave, Check This Out