HANOVER, Md. — Joe Theismann swears his arm is not that good anymore.
Maybe that鈥檚 why Live! Casino owner David Cordish, who invited Theismann to compete in his latest promotion, felt alright challenging a former professional athlete in the actual discipline in which he competed. It鈥檚 one thing to putt against John Daly or shoot free throws against Shaq. But throwing footballs against a former NFL quarterback?
鈥淗e probably would have had a distinct advantage if he asked me to punt, because I have a one-yard punt average in the NFL,鈥� said Theismann, which is true 鈥� his lone NFL punt (, when Jay Schreoder was injured, went exactly one yard).
Perhaps, then, Cordish might have had a shot.
鈥淲ell, you know, I knew he鈥檇 be a gentleman and keep it close, which he did,鈥� said Cordish.
With five throws each, Theismann netted $30,000 to Cordish鈥檚 $18,000 for the promotional giveaway to all in attendance. Theismann also took some time to weigh in on the state of the NFL, particularly the league鈥檚 new roughing the passer enforcement and the next generation of signal callers.
If anyone could be forgiven for wanting more rules that protected quarterbacks, it would be Theismann, given the devastating compound fracture that ended his career. But he wasn鈥檛 thrilled with the early-season trend.
鈥淵ou kneecap the defenses. You handicap them right away. And this is what the NFL has done,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey want to stress security, they want to stress the ability for guys not to get hurt. So they take it to an extreme and then they dial it back.鈥�
When we spoke, it was just a few weeks into the NFL season, and the extreme number of flags in the first few weeks began to come under control by Week 4. After 33 combined flags throughout the first three weeks, there were just 20 in the next four weeks.
鈥淭hey did the same thing with the helmet rule 鈥� they took it to an extreme, they instituted a rule, they saw how it worked,鈥� said Theismann. 鈥淣othing really works the first time. I mean, we still haven鈥檛 figured out what a catch is, to a degree鈥� I think eventually we鈥檙e going to get this worked out where we鈥檒l protect the people we want to protect, and yet give the fans a chance to cheer.鈥�
He鈥檚 also enjoyed watching the new crop of young quarterbacks, with a particular focus on the Chiefs鈥� sensational second-year passer.
鈥淲ell, you鈥檇 have to be not watching TV to not realize that Patrick Mahomes is something special in Kansas City,鈥� Theismann said.
And while he mentioned a few of the rookies already starting for their teams, he pointed out that there ought to be a few more high-profile vacancies to fill in the near future.
鈥淲hen you stop and think about it, you鈥檝e got guys like Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Eli Manning, Philip Rivers 鈥� there鈥檚 four football teams that, in the next two or three years, are probably going to be looking for more young guys,鈥� said Theismann.
At this point, Cordish piped in — 鈥淚鈥檓 available鈥nd I鈥檓 cheap!鈥�
