First big NFL free-agent QB looks back.
First, there was Reggie White. One year later, in 1994, there was Scott Mitchell. They were the players who ushered in the era of NFL free agency, cashing in on the open market in a way their predecessors werent afforded. For Mitchell, seven starts in placeof an injured Dan Marino in Miami earned him a three-year, $11 million contract with Detroitstar money in those daysand matching expectations. More than two decades later, Mitchell is still bugged by the perception of not living up to that price tag. After a 12-year career as an NFL quarterback, including five seasons with the Lions, hes now president of sales for a Utah-based software company, and hes also fresh off dropping 124 pounds on The Biggest Loser. On the eve of another free agency frenzy, The MMQB turned back the clock with one of the leagues original free agentsand in the process got some enlightening perspective on quarterback development and weight loss.
MITCHELL: Oh my goodness, there is so much. The biggest thing: I finally was able to realize a dream Id had my whole life, of being a starting quarterback in the NFL. I had gone to the NFL somewhat unheralded. I left after my junior year at Utah and ended up with the Miami Dolphins, and I thought it was the worst thing that had ever happened to me. It turned out it was a very good thing. I was able to watch, arguably, one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time [Dan Marino] every day in practice and meetings and games, and arguably one of the greatest coaches in Coach [Don] Shula. I sat between those two guys for four years, and I really learned a lot. It was a great experience. So when I did get an opportunity to play, I was ready for it. I had worked really hard. A lot of people said, Oh gosh, the guy got lucky. He played just a short period of time and then he was able to capitalize on it. But it was four years, it was a lot of hard work, and when I did get my opportunity, I had to play well.
MITCHELL: Its kind of funny now when you say those numbers, because its almost like nothing compared to what happens today. But at the time, it was a huge deal. And a lot of people were like, How can you give that guy all that money? But at the time, for me, that was tremendous. That was a huge moment in my life. I remember getting the first check and it was like, gosh, Ive never seen this many zeroes in my life. It was really quite a fun moment. And then I had to pay the IRS, and I couldnt fit all the words on the check, it was such a big number. It was quite a surreal moment.
MITCHELL: It was kind of funny, actually. I was in Detroit, and we were sitting with Kevin Colbert, who is now the GM for Pittsburgh. He was in Miami when they drafted me, so he knew a lot about me both when I was in college and then in Miami. So they were really interested, and we were sitting in his office and he said, Look, Im going to be really candid with you. Were interested in you, but we are also really interested in Erik Kramer, who was here last year. Youre the guys we really want, and were going to pick one of the two of you. Halfway through this conversation, my agent gets a phone call. He leaves the room, and he comes back in a few minutes with the Cheshire Cat grin on his face, and he whispers in my ear, Hey, Erik Kramer just signed with the Chicago Bears. We didnt tell Kevin. For me, it boiled down to Detroit and Minnesota, and they were very similar: good running backs, good offenses, good receivers. I just felt like, when it got down to it, that Detroit really wanted me more than Minnesota did, so I went there. And I really had a great experience. We had some really great teams and some really good offenses. That whole process was a really interesting thing, almost like going to college again and having everyone want you.
MITCHELL: It was certainly a nice departure from what had existed before. I remember feeling like, I can play in this league and do well, but I am stuck behind a really good player who has a lot of years left. And theres really not a chance for me to go out in the open market and see what Im worth and find an opportunity for myself. It was very restrictive. They had what was called Plan B, and Plan B was basically getting rid of all the players at the end of the year you didnt really like or really want, or who werent long-term players. There was a lot of frustration, because here are people who maybe arent the upper-tier players in the league, who are getting to set their value in the marketplace. So then free agency came along.
Overall, I think it has been a tremendous help to the league as far as player salaries and how things have gone. People cant argue it hasnt gotten better. I think the one thing that has been a detriment, though, is the continuity of teams changes so quickly. Teams are more willing to keep three or four one-to-four-year players now, because they get four players for the price of one veteran. You see a lot of teams with one or two superstars, and then a lot of young inexperienced players. It kind of hurt that average but really solid veteran who you need on your team. Teams like the Patriots and the Steelers have said, Were not going to break the bank in free agency, and were not going to be held ransom by a player, and theyve been able develop these mid-tier players and get a team of really solid players that maybe arent those superstars. Theyve kind of had a different philosophy than other teams, and I think theyve managed that process quite well.
MITCHELL: Well, you pretty much have to poop gold nuggets. You have to walk on water. I went to Detroit, and they had been to the playoffs, and it was one of those things where it was like, we really feel like we are just a quarterback away from winning it all. You go in with that expectation, but its really an unreasonable expectation, because it takes more than just a quarterback. I stepped into a very tough situation. It was Detroit, and they are brutally ruthless on quarterbacks there. It is not a quarterback-friendly place for the most part, and thats fine. I didnt have a problem with that. Then I was, all of a sudden, one of the first people to really be able to take advantage of free agency. If you look at what I did in Detroit, when I was playing and I was healthy, I was very productive. I was a very good player. But there is the tendency to kind of minimize what I actually did there. I dont really know where it comes from, if its just that expectation, or if people were jealous, [thinking] that guy got money and maybe he didnt deserve it, or he didnt play long enough to prove that he was that valuable. I really dont know. But I just know my performance was better than I got credit for, and the expectations were probably a little bit unrealistic.
However, I felt that had I been given enough time, we could have been something very good in Detroit. There are a lot of factors that always play into it, the success and the failure. You cant just say, well, the guy maybe wasnt good enough to deserve it. I hear this all the time, especially with all these quarterbacks recently who have been in a system and have developed and done well, and then theyve gone out in free agency and havent measured up to what teams thought they would have. I think thats unfair to put that all on the player, because theres so much that goes into having success in a situation. Youve gotta have a system that fits your personality, your skills. Youve gotta keep people healthy. Its not just the player and whether theyre good or not. If you can play in the NFL, youre good, period. And how good you get, a lot of times, just depends on situation and things working out the right way.
MITCHELL: We were able to [have success], and thats the interesting thing. I went to Detroit and we have a guy named Tom Moore as our offensive coordinator. In 1995, we start out the season 0-3, and then on a Monday night we are going to play the 3-0 San Francisco 49ers, who had just won the Super Bowl. We all had a gut check and said, OK, wait. Weve got this QB in here; weve got all these good players; whats going on? And we kind of revamped our whole offense and just said, here are our best players, and lets put them in a position to make the best plays they can to succeed. Weve got this running back who really runs best when you spread out a defense, and weve got all these great wide receivers. Lets go three wide receivers, and spread out the defense. We simplified what we did on offense, and all of a sudden we had this record-setting year in 1995. Started the season 0-3, and ended up being one of [five] teams ever to make the playoffs after starting 0-3. And its the genesis of Tom Moores Peyton Manning offense. That all started in Detroit.
I just think so much of the success you have as a player is a coach who is willing to say, What do you do well? Lets structure our offense to fit your strength. Then you can just go out and let your natural abilities develop and prosper and come out. If were always trying to force you to be something that maybe you are not, then we are asking too much. The game is so hard and its so fast, you just have to play by your instincts anyway. So putting a player in a position to be able to do that is really god coaching. Thats what they did in Detroit; thats what Wayne Fontes did. Thats what Don Shula did in Miami. Thats what a lot of these really successful coaches do. If youre going to bring someone in, and youre going to give them all that money, put a system and players around them to give them the best shot to succeed.
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First big NFL free-agent QB looks back.