Current Buc and son of a Hall of Famer makes a bold claim
Kevin Dyson twisted and turned on the Georgia Dome turf, stretching as far as he could to reach the pigskin across the white-painted turf. The side judge trotted up the line, marking the ball at the one-yard line. The clock inside the Georgia Dome read 0:00, as the confetti rained down from the rafters. The […]
Kevin Dyson twisted and turned on the Georgia Dome turf, stretching as far as he could to reach the pigskin across the white-painted turf. The side judge trotted up the line, marking the ball at the one-yard line.
The clock inside the Georgia Dome read 0:00, as the confetti rained down from the rafters. The scoreboard read: St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16.
And the thrilling end of Super Bowl XXXIV also marked the end of one of the most improbable seasons and unbelievable underdog stories in the history of the NFL. Kurt Warner's path from a grocery store employee to Arena Football League quarterback to eventual Super Bowl champion and MVP was nothing short of a literal Hollywood film, with his life story chronicled in the film American Underdog.
A 2017 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, Warner remains arguably the greatest undrafted free agent of all time. His son hopes the apple will fall very close to that tree.
Kade Warner was signed by the Bucs as an undrafted free agent on April 29. Warner played three seasons at Nebraska before transferring to Kansas State, where he played the last two years. Last year, he pulled in 46 catches for 456 yards and a team-high 5 touchdowns. Warner projects to be a slot receiver in Tampa Bay.
What does Warner bring to the table? Warner told the Pewter Report recently that it's his football smarts and attitude.
“I take everything personally. Like I was saying, from that undrafted, that walk-on mentality, every little thing. Like if the coaches pick somebody else before me, I write that down, if somebody gets more reps than me in this walk through, I write that down. It’s kind of like that chip on your shoulder, I think just that expression is said a lot so I don’t like saying it, but I just take everything personally.
“So, I’m competitive like that and I’m the smartest receiver in this draft class,” Warner said. “I’ve said it before. They’re going to get a good slot receiver out of me and I’m going to know exactly what to do on every play.” – Kade Warner via Matt Matera, Pewter Report
Warner's claim of being the smartest WR in the class will be put to the test once training camp gets underway, but Warner's agility, hands, and bulldog attitude should give him a puncher's chance of fighting for a back-end WR spot on the 53-man roster. That being said, it'll be his performance on special teams that likely determines whether he sticks, or whether he finds himself on the practice squad or looking for another opportunity elsewhere.
Head coach Todd Bowles spoke recently about Warner, and he made reference to his contributions as a special teams player.
"Coachable, very coachable. Solid football player. He can catch the ball, he can play special teams, he can do a lot of things that we need and we’re always looking for special teams players.” – Todd Bowles via Matt Matera, Pewter Report
Special teams have often represented opportunities for underdogs to stick around and give themselves a shot to show they belong in the offensive or defensive huddles. As such, if the son of the American Underdog wants to become his living embodiment, it likely will be there that he begins that journey.
