At 4:30pm on Saturday, July 4th... I heard some awful news in the NFL world. Former Titans and Ravens QB Steve McNair was found dead in his home in Nashville. I thought it was a lie. I had read it via twitter and I couldn't find anything on CNN, ESPN or the NFL Network confirming this information. At around 4:53pm, I finally saw a Breaking News scroll at the bottom of ESPNews. It was true. McNair, along with a female, was murdered. My heart immediately sank.


As a Ravens fan and a fan of football overall, this loss is a HUGE one to me. As a player, I loved him so much. He meant a lot to the NFL in so many ways.

Coming out of Alcorn State, McNair (drafted 3rd overall in the 1995 draft) proved that a QB from a small college can make a big splash in the league.


McNair became known as one of the toughest players in the game by his peers. His versatile style of play kept defenders guessing, with being able to throw for TDs or rush for TDs. His QB play has been used by the likes of Michael Vick and Donovan McNabb, both who were drafted after McNair.



McNair retired before the start of the 2008 season, saying that his body and his mind were no longer on the same page. Fans understood..... With all of the hits he had taken for so many years, his body has been through enough.

McNair's resume is extremely impressive. He's a 3 time Pro Bowler, he was the co-MVP of the league in 2003, he played in one of the most exciting Super Bowls in SB XXXIV (in which the Titans lost to the Rams in the final seconds), and he's one of three QBs to pass for over 30,000 yards and rush for over 3,500 yards (Steve Young and Fran Tarkenton are the other two, both are Hall-Of-Famers). But perhaps his biggest accomplishments was off-the-field, when he was a nominee for the Walter Payton Award after his work for Hurricane Katrina victims in 2005.

As an intern once at a local sports station, I've met McNair on a few occasions. For me, this really hurts. He was always a nice guy and willing to answer any questions asked to him. He was loved by his teammates and never gave the media problems. I know that he spent most of his years with the Oilers/Titans, but for the Ravens community, he brought so much hope during the 2006 season, when the Ravens were 13-3 and a top seed in the AFC Playoffs. He gave this city hope that we would get another championship, and I will always remember him for that.

At only 36 years of age, McNair leaves behind his wife, Mechelle and four children: Junior, Steven, Tyler and Trenton. McNair exuded greatness on and off the field. This is truly a tragedy. The NFL has lost a great player far too soon.

McNair, you will be missed.....