Gruden Pleased, Puzzled About Starting Quarterback

Published on August 2, 2010 under United Football League (UFL 1)
Florida Tuskers News Release


When it comes to quarterbacks, any professional football coach will tell you that it's the most important position on the team.

So when you know that last year's starting quarterback is coming back, particularly when that quarterback was the league's MVP, any coach would feel pretty good about the situation. That is of course unless you are Florida Tuskers rookie head coach Jay Gruden. Although he is pleased about getting starting quarterback Brooks Bollinger back, Gruden also remains somewhat puzzled by his good fortune.

"Honestly, I don't get it," Gruden says about Bollinger who led the Tuskers to a perfect 6-0 regular season record last season. "All you hear about in the NFL are complaints about the lack of quality quarterbacks - particularly back-ups. Brooks had a great season for us last year and would have been an ideal candidate to compete for a spot on an NFL roster. He's smart, accurate and a great leader and on top of that he can handle the tough situations. I don't know whether its age or what, but I can't really put my finger on why he wasn't given a chance to get back in the NFL."

Bollinger certainly posted the numbers in his inaugural UFL season to merit consideration among scouts. He hit on 121 of 179 passes (67.6%) for 1,618 yards and 14 touchdowns with just three interceptions in the regular season.

Those totals included two, 300-yard games; as well as a four-touchdown effort against the New York Sentinels where Bollinger completed almost 80 percent of his passes (20 of 26) for 225 yards in a 35-13 rout on Oct. 21.

It's not the first time Bollinger has seen success. At the University of Wisconsin, Bollinger went 30-12 as a starting quarterback and led the team to a 3-0 record in bowl games. With the Badgers, Bollinger was a double threat, compiling more than 1,700 career rushing yards and 26 touchdowns to go with his passing stats.

Those stats led to the New York Jets using a sixth round pick on him during the 2003 NFL draft.

After spending his rookie year on the bench, Bollinger became the starting quarterback in 2004 when both Chad Pennington and Jay Fiedler went down with injuries. Bollinger would complete 56.4% of his passes and thrown for 1,558 yards in nine starts. Bollinger would then spend two seasons with the Vikings and one year with the Dallas Cowboys, where a series of injuries and other circumstances limited his playing time. When the Cowboys did not re-sign him after the 2008 season, Bollinger would sign with Detroit for the 2009 season, only to be waived after the final pre-season game.

Expressing a desire to still play professional football, Bollinger reluctantly signed with the UFL. "To be honest, I didn't know what to expect," Bollinger said. "I was really surprised to see a lot of guys that I played with in the NFL. It didn't take long for me to realize this was a league made up of very good football players."

Under the tutelage of Gruden, who served as the Tuskers offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach last season, Bollinger came into his own as a quarterback. He spearheaded an attack that led the league in both total offense and scoring offense and came within one ill-fated pass in overtime of the championship game of completing a perfect season.

With those credentials, Bollinger also thought he would be getting a call from the NFL. "Based on the number of UFL players that signed with the NFL last season, it was obvious that they were spending a lot of time scouting out league," Bollinger said. "Based on the fact that I had some NFL experience and based on my performance, I really thought I would get a call."

Although he has no way of knowing for sure, Bollinger believes his veteran status may have had something to do with the lack of interest from the NFL. "Our league has a lot of players that simply were nothing more than NFL cap casualties," Bollinger said. "With the minimum salary for a five-year veteran hovering close to $600,000, a lot of teams would rather sign a young guy for economic reasons. Whether that had anything to do with my situation, it's hard to say."

What's not hard to say is that Gruden is happy to have the veteran quarterback back. "He brings a lot to the table," Gruden says. "Maybe he doesn't have the strongest arm in professional football, but he's extremely intelligent, a born leader and he makes all the plays we ask him to make. It's great to have him back with the Tuskers, but I not so sure he shouldn't be on an NFL roster somewhere."

Although Bollinger would like to return to the NFL, he says he's content playing with the Tuskers. He notes that the quality of players, level of play, and the overall atmosphere made last year a joy for him.

"I had an absolute blast playing for the Tuskers last year," Bollinger said. "We had good players and good coaches and we started building a foundation of a great league. Sure, I would love an opportunity to play in the NFL again, but this league is great for players in my situation. There are a lot of guys like me who just love to play the game and the UFL gives us that opportunity."



United Football League Stories from August 2, 2010


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