McNair to consider retirement?

[CaptainHook]

I would think you have to chalk this up to frustration after a bad day. Why would he even consider it?

 

HOUSTON -- Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair hinted Sunday that his 10th season in the NFL could be his last.

 

 

 

 

"In the offseason I'm going to take a long look at what I'm going to do," McNair said after the Titans wasted an 18-point lead in a 31-21 loss to the Houston Texans. "I just have to evaluate myself."

 

 

 

McNair was clearly frustrated after Tennessee's latest defeat, which was his second start since a bruised sternum caused him to miss most of the previous four weeks. He finished 25-of-34 for 227 yards with three touchdowns but fumbled twice and threw an interception that sealed the win for the Texans.

 

 

 

After sharing co-MVP honors with Peyton Manning last season, McNair and the Titans have gotten off to their worst start since he became a full-time starter in 1997. Coming into Sunday's game, McNair's passer rating of 66.4 wouldn't have ranked among the league's top 30 quarterbacks.

 

 

 

The Titans (4-7) dropped into last place in the AFC South after Sunday's loss, essentially eliminating them from the playoff race.

 

 

 

"We have to focus on winning the next five games with heart and character," McNair said. "We have to bring back enthusiasm and fun to the game."

 

 

 

Despite a string of injuries so long the Titans had to include a new page in their media guide to accommodate them, McNair ranks second to Brett Favre in starts by a quarterback since 1997.

 

 

 

McNair had surgery in February to remove a cracked bone spur from his left ankle. The injury caused him to miss two games last season and left him hobbling at the end of the 17-14 playoff loss at New England.

 

 

 

"I've taken a beating the last five or six years," McNair said. "I need to look at what's best for my health and myself and this ball team."

 

 

 

McNair was selected by the Houston Oilers with the fourth overall pick in the 1995 draft out of Division I-AA Alcorn State. After taking over as the starter two years later, McNair became the face of the franchise through its move from Texas to Tennessee.

 

 

 

Along with friend and former teammate Eddie George, McNair led the Titans to the playoffs in four of the previous five seasons, including the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance in 2000. His 73 career victories are a franchise record, three more than six-time Pro Bowler Warren Moon.

[HighKite]

I know if I was Fisher I would not start him again this year and let him figure it out from the sidelines..I mean what message does that send your players finishing off the year if your QB is talking retirement during the season?

[Bill Swerski]

I know if I was Fisher I would not start him again this year and let him figure it out from the sidelines..I mean what message does that send your players finishing off the year if your QB is talking retirement during the season?

 

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I said something similar about Priest and almost got my head bitten off.

 

FWIW, I hope that McNair (and Priest for that matter) doesn't. He's a freaking warrior.

[HighKite]

Yeah , McNair has been a good 1 but he has never been able to stay healthy ..I guess we will find more about it as the week goes on.

[Skrappy1]

I'd be a little surprised if he actually did it (Favre has openly talked about retiring for a few years now), although not shocked. He has taken a beating throughout his career, and this year the chest injury really seems to have taken it's toll...I mean to see him sit out a few games you know he must've really been hurting, plus he spent time in the hospital with it and was having trouble breathing. I'd be surprised if someone didn't at least think about retiring with stuff like that going on, especially when the Titan team is currently a disaster.

[Ursa Majoris]

His wife may well talk him into it.

[Chargerz]

I think this is probably post-defeat venting. Players can talk this way when they're beat up and losing. He will walk away from this loss today and reassess where his career is headed. I'll betcha he doesn't retire after all.

[Czarina]

Hey a little venting after a frustrating loss. Besides, maybe he'll decide "I can quit any time I want" and figure that he should just go out and have fun playing. Seems that's what happened to Brett Favre. So long as he's having fun with it, he'll keep going.

[Egret]

Maybe he ran into Earl Campbell and saw that Campbell can't climb a fight of stairs anymore. Maybe he'd like the chance to lead a normal life after football. The guy is taking a beating, and his team is going nowhere this year.

[CaptainHook]

^^^

[Chargerz]

Then again, maybe he'll really retire, smoke some Josh Gordon, try holistic medicine, and then want to be reinstated like some other player we all know.

[CaptainHook]

Dwayne Blakley.

 

 

The name doesn't ring many bells outside Atlanta, where Blakely serves as the Falcons' third-string tight end, but he's easily recognizable to Steve McNair. Blakely is the face of the Titans quarterback's current frustration.

 

 

It all started when tight end Frank Wycheck, for year's McNair's most trusted receiver, retired in January. In March the Titans traded their big-play wideout, Justin McCareins, to the Jets, figuring they'd lose him to unrestricted free agency at the end of the season anyway. The face of the franchise, running back Eddie George, was let go in July.

 

 

 

Reigning co-MVP Steve McNair has been feeling a lot of heat this season.

By the end of training camp, McNair had developed a chemistry with, of all people, Blakely, who had had stints on practice squads in Kansas City, Miami, and San Diego before Tennessee. McNair grew to trust the first-year player from Missouri and is said to have been furious when the Titans waived him in September.

 

 

Now another f-word is being used in association with McNair: frustrated. It boiled over after Sunday's loss in Houston, in which McNair -- all in the second half -- set up a Texans touchdown with a fumble deep in Titans territory, cost the Titans a score with a fumble near the Texans' end zone, and threw an interception with Tennessee trailing by three points with two minutes left.

 

 

After the loss, which dropped the Titans to 4-7, the league's ultimate warrior hinted that he may consider hanging up his armor after this, his 10th season.

 

 

"This whole season hasn't been a consistent thing for this offense and myself," McNair told reporters. "You get to wondering if things continue to be that way, you have to take a long look at it after the season to see what you're going to do."

 

 

He added, "You have to look at the injury aspect of myself and this ball club. I feel like at this point in time you have to take a hard look at it. Back in the days, I used to play and play well when I was hurt, but at the same time it has taken a toll."

 

 

Now, you can read into McNair's comments and interpret that he's contemplating retirement, or you can do what the Titans did and see that McNair's statements weren't as much an admission of mortality as a plea for help. People inside the Titans organization, according to one such person, took McNair's comments as a serious threat to quit unless management quits disassembling and upgrades his supporting cast.

 

 

No, this wasn't Brett Favre foreseeing the end. Most can't imagine McNair calling it a career just a season after the best campaign of his career, for which he shared league MVP honors with Peyton Manning. Receiver Derrick Mason estimated the odds of his quarterback retiring at "five percent … probably less than that," and a team source set them at "1 in 50" that McNair wouldn't be back next year. It may be that McNair is having difficulty seeing the point of putting his body through additional punishment for a franchise so cap strapped to where it could not afford a 45th player's salary for Sunday's game. Injured running back Chris Brown was active but did not dress against Houston.

 

 

McNair, who will turn 32 in February, still is an elite quarterback. Sunday he was scrambling like it's 1999. It's been about that long since the Titans made a significant addition to their offense (tackle Fred Miller in 2000).

 

 

And to add insult to the bruised sternum with which McNair is playing, he's probably guilty of coveting his neighbor's belongings, though God probably would let this one go. The Colts have done nothing but surround soon-to-be two-time MVP Manning with talent. Edgerrin James is a first-round pick. Reggie Wayne is a No. 1. Dallas Clark is a No. 1. Marcus Pollard is a former "franchise" player. Indy signed Brandon Stokley per Manning's request.

 

 

Now, you can read into McNair's comments and interpret that he's contemplating retirement, or you can do what the Titans did and see that McNair's statements weren't as much an admission of mortality as a plea for help.

 

Meanwhile, McNair has been disarmed. Tennessee used a second-round pick on Florida tight end Ben Troupe, but he has trouble executing the plays in practice. At least he is practicing. Last year's second-rounder and supposed replacement for McCareins, Tyrone Calico, is hurt. Tight ends Erron Kinney and Shad Meier each have missed time with injuries. Brown has been better but far less durable than George. The offensive linemen have been too beat up themselves to adequately protect their quarterback.

 

 

Sunday at the RCA Dome, McNair gets to watch Manning continue his assault on the single-season record for touchdown passes. The Titans, once an explosive passing offense but now devoid of deep threats, are 26th in yards per pass attempt at 6.15. McNair led the league last year at 8.04. Trying to carry the team, McNair has seen his rating drop from a league-leading 100.4 last season to 73.1 this year, 24th in the league and his worst since 1997, his first season as the full-time starter.

 

 

On the other hand there's Manning, who continues to rack up the touchdowns by simply running the offense.

 

 

From 1999 to 2003, the Titans won more regular-season games (56) than any other team. That successful run has been interrupted.

 

 

It very well could end if McNair walks away. Tennessee would be wise not to call his bluff.

 

 

And to give Blakley a call in the offseason.

 

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[HighKite]

I read that article in the paper ..my 1st thought after reading it was let the whiner retire.

[Bill Swerski]

I read that article in the paper ..my 1st thought after reading it was let the whiner retire.

 

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Whiner?! What a lousy analysis...

[CaptainHook]

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Only one thing bothers Titans quarterback Steve McNair more than not being able to play on Sundays:

 

Not being able to play when he's away from football field, when the ones calling his name are his children.

 

''It is frustrating when you have a 6-year-old boy who asks you to go play catch and you have to tell him no because of your injuries,'' McNair said yesterday. ''That frustrates you mentally, because you can't do the things as a father that you need to do.

 

''I want to be able to play catch, I want to be able to go out and do things with my kids that a normal father can do, but I can't do it banged up.''

 

McNair, 31, made some waves on Sunday when he dropped hints about possibly retiring after the season. Most everyone with the Titans chalked the comments up to McNair's frustrations from a losing season, performances below his NFL Co-MVP level of 2003 and his bruised sternum.

 

 

Speaking publicly for the first since Sunday, McNair made it clear his return for 2005 isn't necessarily a slam dunk.

 

''I don't think I said it out of frustration,'' McNair said. ''I have to take a long look at my health. It has nothing to do with this football team or what position we are in right now. It is all about my health, and this year has been one of the worst as far as me not being on the field. … My body right now is saying one thing and my mind is saying another.

 

''The frustrating part about it is nobody understands but me, and probably a couple of other people, how hard it is for me after a game to get out of my bed or to go out and play toss with my little boy. That is the frustrating part about it, not being able to do the things I could normally do if I was healthy. This injury is causing me to miss out on a lot of things, not football-wise but personal-wise also.''

 

McNair aggravated his sternum injury in last Sunday's 31-21 loss to the Texans and did not practice yesterday. He has missed three games and was knocked out of two others early.

 

He said he'd like to play this Sunday against the Colts and finish the season strong, then he'll take a deeper look at his future.

 

McNair's current contract doesn't expire until after the 2009 season, though because of a $50 million option bonus set to kick in after the '05 season the Titans and McNair will have to make a decision on his future at that time.

 

If he's still around, that is.

 

''My body has been through a lot in my 10 years of playing football,'' McNair said. ''Two or three times down the road I've thought about (retirement), but somehow I have been talked out of it or I come back feeling good the next week. But it gets tiresome when you can't go out and compete with your teammates who are going out there every day.

 

''I am going to evaluate myself and see how I feel and see if I can get my body right and go from there. I am not looking past this year … We'll talk about it after the season, whether I do it this year, next year or whenever. I am just going to evaluate myself, sit down with my family and talk about it, have a long discussion and probably later on this summer I'll let you know.''

 

This season McNair has completed 129-of-215 passes for 1,343 yards, with eight TDs and nine interceptions. His quarterback rating of 73.1 is well below his 100.4 of last season when he shared MVP honors with Colts QB Peyton Manning.

 

''A lot of people say this is about the season and not having a great year individually, but it is not like that,'' McNair said. ''It is not about this ball club. This ball club is going to be good, and is always going to be good, with or without me. … What I said was based on my health.''

 

Colts Coach Tony Dungy said he expects to see McNair in the lineup this Sunday. He also recalled his conversation with McNair in February at the Pro Bowl.

 

''He didn't talk like a guy that wanted to be in the game at 37, 38, and 39 years old. (But) I think he wants to get to the Super Bowl and win it very badly,'' Dungy said. ''This is a great, great player and a guy who has been tremendous for that franchise. Just like Brett Favre and people like that, you would like everybody to get a chance to see him play as often as possible.''

 

McNair said he's never talked to Favre, a good friend, about his retirement plans. Few Titans are really that close to McNair or know exactly what he's thinking.

 

''This is my deal,'' he said. ''This is something I have to deal with.''