The Dave Pasch Podcast - Kurt Warner

love doing games. I would never quit my day job. It's my passion, it's what I do best. But I also loved talking all sports and interviewing guests especially it takes me back to some of my years prior to coming to the Cardinals. I graduated in nineteen ninety four

from Syracuse. I worked in Morgantown, West Virginia, for ten months, then moved to Detroit, working for an all sports radio station there for two years, and then worked for two years in Chicago, and part of my duties there was hosting a nightly radio talk show on WMAQ six seventy am. During the last dance the final run for the Chicago Bulls. So when the Cardinals and I came up with this idea for a podcast, since there were so many podcasts out there, big reason we thought this could be unique

was because of the guests. So we're going to have on guests from all walks of life, former and current players, coaches, broadcasters from a variety of sports talking Cardinals, NFL, and much more. Of course, the priority at the Dave Pash Podcast was making sure that the first edition had on an incredible guest. I couldn't think of a better way to kick it off than with Hall of Famer Kurt

Warner coming up. Kurt's going to talk about his days with the Cardinals, his proudest moment as an NFL quarterback, and who he confided in about his retirement during his final season in the NFL. Some stories that maybe you haven't heard before. What did Kurt say to the team at halftime Super Bowl forty three after the interception by James Harrison? What did Kurt tell Larry Fitzgerald the very

first time they spent time with one another. Kurt will give his opinion on whether he thinks Larry is done or if he'll play football again in twenty twenty one. I got to know Kurt when he was a player

with the Cardinals. We're going to talk a little bit about our relationship, like the time I played basketball with Kurt at the YMCA and what he did that had me amazed, Also helping Kurt prepare for life after football, which turned out to be as a broadcaster, and what he told me outside the Cardinals locker room just moments after the Super Bowl loss to the Steelers that left

me absolutely speechless. We'll discuss American Underdog, the Kurt Warner's story, Kurt's new movie, which comes out in December, and why what wasn't in the movie might actually be the greater story. Without further ado, let's get you to the interview. Here is Hall of Famer Kurt Warner on the first edition of the Dave Pass Podcast. Kurt, I've got so many things I want to talk to you, talk with you about today. Man. I know you got work to do, so I won't keep you too long, but I really

appreciate you doing this. It's the first time I've ever done a podcast. The last time I did any sort of talk show was in Chicago in nineteen ninety seven ninety eight, when I was just coming out of college, and that happened to be the last dance year. So I remember all we did was talking about Michael Jordan. But all we're gonna do right now is talk about

Kurt Warner and the life. You weren't talking about arena football then, because that's where I was back in nineteen ninety seven, playing a little Brena football at the time, and then you became a movie star, and here we are talking about American Underdog, the Kurt Warner Story. So it's going to be released December tenth. And I remember talking to you a few years ago and you told me, Hey, I'm gonna be doing this movie. How did it come about?

Who approached you? And at first were you hesitant or You're like, this is great, let's do it. I think I wrapped my mind around it years ago because when I came onto the scene and the first year, the Magical Year win, the Super Bowl, win, the MVP, you do the Disney commercial, and as soon as that all played out, it came down to, oh my gosh, this is a movie that's made for Disney, Like this is

that Disney movie. The way has played out. So early on people were talking about that, and obviously there was a whole lot of work to do, you know, before this would take place, but at least, you know, people said it out there like, hey, if this keeps going like this, this could be a movie. And so that's kind of where you first initially go, Okay, you know,

we'll see I see what people are saying. And as things played out and having the success that I did and getting to the Hall of Fame, I think there

was a big part of us that thought this. You know, when you look at other movies that are out there that you know, the Rudy movies, you know Invincible and you know Michael Ore's movie, those different things, you go, well, if those are made into a movie, this one probably will be as well, because when you look at the entirety of the journey, it's probably greater than any of those other ones. So you know, all of that stuff

goes into it. But you know, it was shortly after I retired where people reached out to us and said, hey, we want to make this movie. We want to get into this. And so now it's been about a decade in the making. As we've gone through different writers and different things, and Brendan I always said that, yeah, it would be great, it would be cool to have a movie about your life, but we're not interested in just doing a movie. If we're going to do the movie,

we want to make sure it's done right. And so we've been through a number of writers because of that, because they, you know, get bits and pieces of it where we're like, that's not the story we want to tell, and so that's why it's taken so long. But it's just funny how God works and the journey and sometimes

you're like, Okay, why is it taken so long? I said that with my career at times, we've said that with the movie, and now I'm not sure there could be a better time with the idea of the underdog story, my underdog story throughout this movie will be a number of underdog stories tied into where we are, you know, as a country, where we are in the world, with everything that's going against us, and so many people that have struggled this past year with the pandemic and kind

of find themselves in a position like I was for a long time, like Okay, what's next? How do I get back to where I want to go, or how do I fulfill my dream with all of these challenges. So it's just kind of amazing that I think it's coming out at the perfect time as we're getting back on track and people are going to need some inspiration and some encouragement that hey, no matter where your circumstances have you right now, this doesn't have to be where

it ends. And I think that's a message that our country needs right now. So I'm excited for the timing of this movie. And now it's just about making sure that we get it right. You mentioned Rudy, and I know somebody I can't say his name who played with Rudy, who said, ah, it was fabricated a little bit. It was made for Hollywood that it wasn't like exactly the story. Have you seen the finished product and is it really

the Kurt Warner story. We're not finished yet, Okay. We did actually just see us screening about a week ago, the first screening that we've seen. And so it's it's going through the testing process now where they do a lot of these screenings and they get their feedback and how does it flow and how does it test and all of that stuff. So we saw the first rendition of it. It is the Kurt Warner story. That's I think the interesting thing about our story is there's there's

so many layers to it. When you know you tie in myself and Brenda's story, and Zach being a part of this in his underdog story, and then obviously the football journey. You don't have to make a whole lot up. You don't have to you know, design a whole lot for the movies or or or put in your movie magic. There's just a lot of really really good moments, and I think that's one of the hardest things right now

as we're putting this together. There's so much stuff. Sure it's not trying to do too much, but still trying to tell the whole story. And so so far, the testing has been great. I mean it's been off the charts, which is exciting for me. I'm everything I do. I want it to be the best. I want it to be excellent. So I still want to shape it a little bit more because I think there's more potential for it.

But we're excited about where the movie is right now and the team we've got in place for the movie. My kids absolutely love Zachary Levi. They love him from Chuck Okay and then Shazam, which was a great movie. So when and my kids know you, they absolutely love your story and so when they found out that Zachary Levi was playing you, they were psyched, Like you couldn't think of a better person to play Kurt Warner, What did you think of the choice And how much time

have you spent with Zachary talking about you? You know, it's funny when you think about these roles. Initially it's like, oh, it just gotta be somebody that looks like me. And so there's definitely that resemblance. There's times even when you see scenes from the movies or pictures that they take where my kids will even be like, damn, that looks

just like you, dad. And then there's the second level of it is you get to know Zachary the quality of person, and that's always important that I think to be able to hit what we want to hit and share our story and share who I am, you need to find somebody that understands, you know, the things that make me take and the things that make me go.

And Zachary is that quality of person as well with his optimism, his positivity, you know, his perspective on life, his faith, all of those different things playing into it. And so we did get a chance, and we've gotten a chance, you know, through this process to get to know each other fairly well. And that has been a fun process. And it's fun to know that you've got somebody playing you that really represents what you're all about. And then the last pieces, I think he did a

great job. I think he did a really really good job of playing me and understanding the essence of what we're trying to get. So I think we hit a home run as well. I mean, I got a superhero playing me. Is it getting me better than that? I can always tell my kids, right, it took a superhero to play me in my movie, but it really has been. I think it was a great choice from from so

many different perspectives. I'm glad that you're happy, because imagine if you had somebody you're like, what they cast this dude who happens to be like five six and one hundred and thirty pounds, you can't throw a ball or as a jerk or whatever. So I'm glad you're happy with a choice. What about Annipaq. I've watched The Irishman, I think now three times. I don't know if you've seen it, but it's awesome. It's three and a half hours, but it's awesome. But Anna pack One plays Robert de

Niro's daughter in the movie. She doesn't say anything the whole movie until the end. It's really well done. And she plays Brenda. Have you had a chance to communicate with her at all? What did you think of the selection of Anna Paquin to play your wife? Brenda and Anna have had a lot more conversation, you know, as started the process, she reached out and so they've built

a nice friendship. Obviously through the process. I've gotten to know Anna a little bit, not as much as Brenda, but I think again, knowing who she is off the screen is what excites you, because they are very similar in a lot of ways. They're both very strong. They

both have that edge to them. They're not going to get pushed around, and you know, it's it's that strength that always drew me to Brenda, and Anna definitely has that as well, and so those things are fun when you go, ah, she's got that, so it's going to be easy for her to portray some of that on the screen, and so I thought Anna did a great job as well. I think a lot of you know, the casting in this movie. We've got some great stars, We've got some great people, and they did a great

job in their roles. And so, you know, that's kind of the unique thing when you watch it because I was only on set for maybe six or seven days total, so you see bits and pieces and you don't know how it's going to play out. So when you actually see it on the big screen, you're like, oh my gosh, he's awesome or she's awesome, and you played a perfect role. And so again, that's the fun part of it is that you see all these different storylines coming together, and

the casting was really great for that. You're still working for NFL Network, and I go back to when you're thinking about retirement. You're playing with the Cardinals and you said, hey, you and I were friends, and you said, can you help me get started and broadcasting and kind of showing me the rope. So I come up to your house and show you how to put together a board, and

we call some games off to television. But part of the right of passage for me to be able to do this with you was to go play basketball with you at the Why. And the first thing is like, I'm like, hey, I'm gonna go play basketball with Kurt, like I us hope he doesn't get hurt. If he gets hurt, like I wasn't there. And the other thing was you put a mouth guard in. I'm like, Okay, this dude's serious. Like I knew he's competitive about football and now he wants to talk about broadcasting, but now

we're gonna play basketball. First of all, you're really good player, and I wasn't very good at played a couple of years in high school. But your competitiveness is what stood out to me. We're playing at the Why, I'm like, these guys might be out and be like it's Kurt Warn, I'm gonna try hurt him. I'm gonna try to take him out, but you kept scoring on they couldn't touch him. Well. I mean, that's the funny thing is that a lot of people when they watched me in between the lines

on the football field, they never saw that piece. Because when you're in that type of leadership role, it's like, okay, you don't ever let him see sweat, you know, there's a competitiveness that drove me. Obviously, you don't get to this point without being competitive, but you didn't see it very often. I tried to make sure that you saw it when you needed with Todd Haley saw it well, yeah, I mean at times, but it was just I was

much more reserved on the football field. And so a lot of people are surprised when they see me in other environments and they're like, holy cow, I mean and you know, I've always just kind of taken their approach that I don't do a lot of things. I don't have a lot of hobbies, but everything I do, I want to be great at it. So it doesn't matter if I'm playing pickup basketball now, it doesn't matter if I'm fifty years old. I want to play and I want to compete, and I want to get guys that

are younger than me that are going to push me. Um, because that's something that drives me. And it's funny because you say that, because my wife will we have a little gym at the house now, so, um, my wife will walk in and she'll see that intensity and the competitiveness going on, and when I'm done, she's like, why do you even play? Do you do? You even have fun playing? And I have to tell her, and you might be able to relate to this, it's just that

it's not ha ha, Yeah, it's fun to me. Fun is being able to compete against someone and having that opportunity in a moment to react to what that guy's doing and see if I can outthink them or outplay them. And that's fun to me. And my wife doesn't quite understand that. She thinks fun should be just laughing and giggling and having a good time. It's a different kind of fun, but it is something that I've tried to apply to everything, even as I've got into broadcasting. It's like, Okay,

how can I be different? How can I bring something unique to the table, and how can I be great at this? Because when you retire, and when we had that conversation, I'm thinking, I've spent my whole life playing football. I don't know if there's anything else I can do. I don't know if I can be good at anything else. And so that's a whole new challenge when you enter retirement and you decide to go down a different path.

But it's been a great challenge and that's I think one of the things that helps you from being Brett Farve and coming back every other year is you dive into something else and go, Okay, here's a new challenge in a new way, and you can sink your teeth into it, and you try to apply a lot of the things that you applied when you were playing to

off the field kind of ventures. You do studio and games, and I've worked with so many different coaches, former players, and everybody that I do a game with, they always say the games are better because it feels like you're part of it. Those competitive juices flow. There's a rush when you're calling a game. And I don't know when you and I were talking twelve years ago and you and I were going through it, if that's something you

thought about. But now that you've had a chance to call games, do you feel that Do you feel like you're still kind of a part of it when you're in that environment as opposed to just being in a studio because you're doing TV games and then you do

you know, Monday night football. For West would want the best part of playing the game and playing live sports is having to react to what happens in front of you can I react in three or four seconds to what the defense is thrown at me and what our play is and get the ball into the right guy's hands and do all of that stuff. Now, when you're calling games, obviously you get a little more than three or four seconds. But that, to me is the part

that I love. If I go into the studio, which I love my studio gig and we have a blast, but they're telling me the topics the day before and I get a chance to do research and think about it and all that stuff, and it's great. I mean, we have a great time and it's a fun challenge. But you know, in the moment, if you're the play by play guy and something huge happens, you've got two seconds to figure out how you're going to call this

with your excitement. As a color guy, you know, I got thirty seconds to be able to break down everything I saw on that play. And so that's what I love so much about calling games is I have to react, you know, And that's the dynamic that I always loved, and playing was the reaction piece. And so you'll never find anything that's quite like playing, you know, in a

Super Bowl and playing at the highest level. But that's why to me, it's the next best thing is calling games, because I do I have to see something, i gotta put it all in there, and then I've got to regurgitate it to somebody that may not know what I know and make it make sense to them and make myself sound smart and all of that good stuff, which is what I love about games. On top of you're

in the environment, sure, you're with the fans. All of those things that add pieces to the puzzle that you know are better than just you know, going into a cold studio with your three or four guys. The energy is always so much better at calling a game. So we had that when you were here with the Cardinals, that period of time when you were thinking about broadcasting

the year before that, the Super Bowl year. And we're going to get into all the details of actually what happened and playing, but I do want to talk about our relationship a little bit because I'm curious a couple of things. You started coming over to our house for a Bible study. We had about twenty or thirty guys

over at the house. I think Jeremy Urban came and maybe a couple other guys, but you came over, and I remember one time you had had a meeting with then President Barack Obama, and so you were a little late and there was a new guy there, one of my neighbors, and I think we met for like two hours that night, and shockingly, you talked a lot during those two and it was funny because afterwards, my neighbor said, man, who was that dude? I swear I've seen that guy

before him, Like, that was Kurt Warner? You got, I'm sitting next to Kurt Warner for two hours. I had no idea it was him. And he's talking about this meeting with Barack Obama, and I had no idea, Like, who's this dude? Do you remember what? You forget the Bible? Say? What did you say to Barack Obama? Do you remember that? You know? I actually had a couple interactions with him, you know. The first one was after the super Bowl.

I remember, you know, talking to Mark Dalton as I was coming home and I was driving on the interstate and got a call from Mark saying, Hey, you're gonna get a call in a couple of minutes from you know, an unknown number of block number. Make sure you pick up it's gonna be, you know, President Obama. And so that was the first time that we talked. After the

super Bowl. He just kind of congratulated me on his career and basically we had some fun that you know, he was cheering for me because I was an old guy like he was and playing in the super Bowl. But that was our first interaction. Then he came back through Arizona to speak and we had the good fortune of me and my my wife and my daughter meeting him the airport and getting a chance to just sit

down with him. It was a nice conversation early in his presidency where the conversation was just you know, how can we pray for you? You know, how can we be there for you from a distance. And you know, I'll never forget that, you know comment he made is pray that I get it right is all he said.

And you know, I thought that was pretty cool that it was important to him to just get it right, whatever that looks like, because you know, as you go into that kind of role, you never know what getting your right looks like as you're faced with a lot of different things. But you know, that's how it came about. It is just knowing that he was coming to town. And I think our goal is always to support our leaders in our country and do what we can to

make a difference. And so it was a nice brief conversation to Um, you know, kind of compliment the call after the Super Bowl, and you know, it was kind of nice to be able to follow him and know what the heart of the man was all about. Look, I've always appreciated your faith, how willing you've been to talk about your faith, and how positive you always are. I'll never get this moment after we lose the Super Bowl,

coming down the elevator from the press box. And for me, you know, because I work at ESPN, I'm doing so many national games, Like for me, this is a labor of love. It's a chance to root for a team. This is my team. Is my twentieth year doing this. I love doing the Cardinal games because I get to be a fan. So I was distraught, furious after the Super Bowl. I'm coming down the elevator, I'm walking through the tunnel in Tampa. And I've always kind of had

this rule. I don't know if anybody else has or it's just me, like after a loss, don't look at the players, like, just walk straight ahead, keep your eyes down. I did it one time when Emma Smith before you got here, when we returned to Dallas, and Roy Williams lit him up and he separated his shoulder, so I had to look as we were going on the plane, and Emma was like dead asleep. I don't know if he's really asleep or he just didn't want anybody bothering him.

The other time was you after the Super Bowl. I'm walking through the tunnel and I'm like, okay, I think I see Kurt out of the corner of my eye outside the locker room. I'm like, don't look at Kurt, like they just lost the Super Bowl. He's probably furious. Just don't look. So I kind of looked out of the corner of my eye and did a double take and looked again, and you were smiling. So I figure, okay, he's looking at me and he's got a smile on his face. I guess I should engage. I came over

to and I'll never forget. You said it was so amazing the things that God did with our team this year, and you also talked about I felt like, you know, I did everything that I could this year, and you had such a positive attitude at a time where I'm sure most people, including me at the time and I didn't even play in the game, were still in shock

over what had just happened. As you look back, do you still have that same view of that year, or are there things about that gamer, about that season that you still play over and over in your mind of Man, I wish I would have done this differently. I think you always have that. You know, when you don't get the end result that you want, you're always going to

think and relive things. And obviously, now that I'm in the media and cover the Super Bowl every year, they forced me to have to think about some of those things you know each and every year. But here's the thing is that, unfortunately, in our culture and in our sport, we've come to the point where we feel like you can only win if you have more points on the scoreboard. And something that I've learned in life is that you

can win when you lose. And that, to me, was what that journey was all about for me and for that team. Was what we accomplished that year and where we were when I got here, and the mindset of everybody in the locker room and the organization, and there was no belief, There was no hope, and we could have said whatever we want it. There was nobody that believed we would ever have success even as we were going through that journey, and we were the worst playoff

team in the history. You know, people talking about things like that, and to watch a group of guys come together and start to believe that they can do something that a short period of time before they never believed and to watch that run and to watch us get there, and again going into halftime, everybody in the locker room we're saying, oh, we got no chance. Kurt just lost the Super Bowl for us. Game over, blah blah blah. Here we are two and a half minutes to go.

We take the lead in the Super Bowl, and now everybody once again are going, see, we've got a team that can win the Super Bowl. We got a team that can do anything we want to do and accomplish anything we set our mind to. And again it doesn't work out that way because we've got some great players on the other side that make great plays, and they win the Super Bowl. You tip your hat and you say well done to them. That's what the super Bowl

is all about. But we won that year. I won that year, And you know, I think that is a great message that we lose sight of way too often, is that win doesn't have to be having more points on the scoreboard. That team and what was accomplished and this organization, this organization is on a different trajectory now because of what we accomplished that year or those three years, and what we did when we were going good. And that,

to me is what life is all about. Because unfortunately we don't all end up on the top of the mountain when it's all said and done, But that doesn't mean we didn't get close, or we didn't go way beyond what we thought we could, or we didn't accomplish what we set out to accomplish. And that, to me

is what I think about with that story. And you know, we talked about the movie earlier, and you know, you got the first chapter where we win the Super Bowl, and it's kind of how everybody expects the movie to end. And I, you know, I have a lot of people that always come up to me and go, man, I think the second half, the second chapter might even be better. And I think, what a great movie that would be where in the end, you don't win the game, but

you still win. And the message that that shares with people because we do we beat ourselves up because I wouldn't have any you know, enough points on the scoreboard. But there was you know, there was a time in that game where everybody in the world said, the Arizona Cardinals are going to be Super Bowl champions. I mean, has it ever been uttered before? No, And nobody in that locker room ever believed it. So that to me

was what that journey was all about. And that was the lesson that I learned along the journey is that, man, there's different ways to win in life, and we need to make sure that we keep the proper perspective on that. I'll never forget. When Larry is running into the end zone, it was towards us where our booth was. We had a weird angle. It was kind of in the corner about the ten yard line. Larry's running into the end zone,

looking up at the scoreboard. They're playing the music that we play at the stadium when the Cardinals score, and we're going nuts in the booth and I look over and there's a booth right next to us. Full of NFL people only, and they're dying, laughing and cheering. I mean, to your point, I think that was the moment everybody said, my goodness, the Arizona Cardinals are gonna win the Super Bowl. And obviously it didn't end the way we all wanted

it to. I am curious what you said at halftime, because I remember throwing my headset off, not just because of the play, but because I screwed up the call. I thought it was William Gay instead of who at the interception? Oh my goodness, in my head out Dames Harrison, and I remember you found out. I'm like, dude, you mistook James Harrison for William Gay. And I think I think I said, you mistook James Harrison Frank Jan Bolder.

But anyway, what did you say at halftime, because you just said, guys in the locker room like, oh, here we go, We're not gonna win. Here's the thing, I didn't say anything. Sometimes in life, as a leader, there's nothing to say that can convince anybody what you're trying to convince them of. What I knew when I walked into the locker room, I knew what everybody was thinking. I knew, you know, the idea was, Man, we had a chance to go ahead in the Super Bowl. Now

we're down ten points, We've got no momentum. This thing's over. And you know, I could have given some rob Ross speech, Oh we're gonna What I said was, as a leader, my goal is going to be what do I do in the first drive of the second half. They're gonna watch me when I walk into that huddle. All eyes will be on me, like, dude, you just blew us the Super Bowl? Now, what are you gonna do? And so my job wasn't to try to motivate them then in the locker room. My job was to go, hey, guys,

I ain't giving up. We got a chance, give me the ball. We'll find a way to do this. We got this far. I believe in you, guys. I want you to believe in me. And so I really didn't say anything at halftime and just knew that was going to be my goal in the second half was to prove to these guys, no matter what went against us all year long, or been against us at any point in time, we're gonna let that go and we're gonna go play our brand of football and we're gonna show

people that we belong here. And that's exactly what we did. And you know, it was that process that we make a play and make a throw. And now you start seeing guys going, oh, we're so through the interception, but he's not given up. But he's not. He doesn't think this thing's over. And that's when you start to get those guys back. So leadership looks a lot of different ways, and sometimes you got to know when to say something

and when it's more about action. Tim Hightower scored the go ahead touchdown at State Farm Stadium to win the NFC Championship on a pass that you threw, obviously, And I remember him telling me, and I think you may have told me the story as well, that he always would look at you and say to himself, and I think he even said it to you audibly, there's something about you. I don't know what it is, there's just

something about you. And he said one time he just was like walking up and down the sideline looking at you, like there's just something about you that and I think what he was trying to communicate was there's a reason people follow you. And I can't quite put my finger on it, but you make us better, And obviously you've realized that's a big reason why you're in the Hall of Fame is because you get people to believe and follow and to do things that maybe they didn't think

they were capable of. That IT factor that it's hard to find. Not a lot of guys have that. Is that something you had to cultivate or is that always there? Is that one of the reasons why you went from where you were playing an arena football to being one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. It's the elusive question, right the IT factor? Where does it come from? Who has it? How do you get it? I don't know, But what I think when it comes to the IT factor,

I think there's a lot of factors that go into it. Obviously, you're good at what you do, and there's things that you do that can be unique. But I've always believed the IT factor and getting other guys to follow you has as much to do with inner confidence as anything else. And so I truly believe that I've never had a

confidence problem that first and foremost. But I believe my journey when you go through the journey that I went through, and there were so many times to go, Okay, you're not good enough, you can't do this, it's not gonna happen, blah blah blah. There's so many times that you can lose that confidence. But once you get through it, you start saying to yourself, there is nothing that I cannot do.

There's nothing that I can accomplish, and specifically when there's a ball in my hands, because that's where I felt at home. I felt like that was what I was born to do. And I believe that is what kind of trickles off of you when guys are watching you, and guys are seeing you and they're wondering what's different. What's different is that I never felt like I was shaken. Whether I was benched three times in the NFL. You know, whether you lose a Super Bowl, you win a Super

Bowl where you working in a grocery store. I never lost that confidence of who I was, what I was capable of, and even like in the Super Bowl, I didn't care if the other ten guys believed or not. It wasn't gonna shake me. And I'll do it by myself if I had to do. And so, but that was always my mindset and I think that's something when you talk about the IT factor, and though as guys, that's what they have is they have an inner confidence that says, nothing will stop me from getting where I

want to go. And when other guys see that, it's like, I don't know what it is, but I'll just follow that guy. Because that guy, you know, Tom Brady, I think is a great example, is that you know there's times where you go, man, I don't know if he's playing great football, but you talk to the people in Tampa last year, and every one of them said, when he came in, we automatically believed. We just saw him and we saw the way that he worked, and he

instilled something in us that was different. And I think that's the ultimate factor when we talk about the it It's not how hard you throw a football or how many wow plays you can make, it's do you enter that environment with a level of confidence that says, follow me and we'll go where we want to go if you just believe along with me. And I just I

think that was what I had. And whether it was partly in eight, partly because of the journey, or you know, some you know ratio out side of that, I do believe the journey had a big part of being able to shape that. So, man, I you know, I remember

you probably remember when we opened this building. Um, you know, third game of the year, I got booed out of the stadium, you know, I got benched after that, and I running off the first time in my life I had run out of a stadium getting booed, you know, and that, you know, that's shocking for anybody, I think, especially when I had had success and you believe that you still can play at a level. And uh and I remember running out of here going my gosh, you know,

how do we get to this point? M so, But you have moments like that, And never once did I go they just don't see it, you know, they just don't know. And I never held it against the fans because I understood what was happening on the field. I understood what the their perception was. But I never let that become My perception is like they're just missing it.

You know, we'll be back and we'll have another shot and we'll show them that, you know, because when I came here, a lot of people had best years are behind him. You can't really anymore. And this is just you know, validation of that. For me, I always knew what was inside there, and just sometimes circumstances don't play out exactly like you want to. But it's even in moments like that where I just you know, for me, it was like, all right, I get it, I understand it.

I can see it from a realistic standpoint, but it never once made me waver in what I could be or what was inside of me? Was it harder to take the Cardinals to the super Bowl as a proven player, albeit a proven player who as you just said, people started a question, will he you know? Was it a flash in the pan with the Rams? Because it didn't end well there and then things didn't go great in New York and you just talked about how things started

here with the Cardinals. Was it harder to take the Cardinals to the super Bowl as a proven guy yet doubted? Or was it harder to take the Rams as a guy that nobody knew about or you don't know what you don't know? Yeah, I mean it was definitely harder to take the Cardinals where we went. To me, it was as much about mindset where this organization was, what the lack of belief was when when I got here, not just in me but within the organization as much

as anything. So that struggle to change perception was a lot harder, you know, obviously there was you know, there were some things when I first came on the scene, and all of those questions and living up to a certain expectation of playing that was hard. But I was I was surrounded by great talent. I had guys around me that that carried me, you know, or could carry me at any point in time. And as you said, at that time, I didn't know what I didn't know,

you know. I That's the funny thing is when people look back at my journey and they talk about the story, right, the things they hang on to Dave or a He sat on the bench for four years in college, and then he went to Green Bay, and he got cut after a couple of weeks in Green Bay, and he worked in a grocery store, and then arena football in Europe and all this negative stuff. And what I always tell people is the ironic thing is that all I remembered about my journey was, Oh, I got to play

one year in college. I was the player of the year in our conference. I got to play three years in arena football, and I was in the championship game two of those three years and was the best player in the league all three years. The same happened in Europe. So when everybody else is looking at the things that I had an accomplished or the things that went against me, I was always going, oh, but wait, when the ball

was in my hands, I've never not been successful. So when I got there, it was like, oh, this is just football. Like it's oh, yeah, it's the NFL. I get it, and you know this might be my last chance. Yeah, but I got a football in my hand. I got a football in my hands. I will play good football and we'll do what we do. I mean, I remember even that first year where we're kind of setting the league on fire, and I remember thinking myself, why are

we planning three times a game? Because I'm coming from the arena league, where you don't punt, you score every time you touch it. And so that was my expectation that nobody else realizes because all they see is, oh my god, this guy's coming from a grocery store and he's in the NFL. How is this even possible? My

mindset was completely different. It was much harder when I got here to Arizona A, because not only did I have to change the perception within an organization of what they could accomplish, I had to change people's perception about me. Sure is that, yeah, they knew I was good way back when, but when I got here, I mean, you can talk to Todd Haley and I mean they just felt his best years are behind him. He can't He's

not that same guy anymore. So when I was coming in here, it was kind of like, oh, he's a seat filler until we get the next guy. And so a big part of this process was also convincing everybody just give me a shot here, like I can still play if you give me that opportunity and you allow me to showcase what I'm capable of doing, and we build an offense around what I'm capable of doing, I

can still play really good football. So having to do both of those things and again you get benched and now it's like, Okay, I get it, I understand why. But I got to convince these guys again that we can be better and collectively and me personally can be better and we can do some things here. That was the hard part of the process. When you talk about changing perception or changing culture, that is much harder. Um, you know, doing what we did in Saint Louis wasn't easy.

I mean what we did for three years and what we accomplished, and you know the expectations that were there. You know, there were some challenges in that, but there was nothing like coming here and having to change this culture and perception from both of those standpoints. That that at the end of the day. You know, people always asking me, you know what parts of your career, what was the best time of your career, what are you

most proud of in your career? And without a doubt, what I'm most proud of is what we accomplish here and where I left the organization compared to where it was when I got here is probably thing in my career that I'm most proud of. And yes, I won the Super Bowl and that was great, and the MVP and all of that. I'm very proud of the things, especially in the first year. Yes, but there's something different because we talk about leadership and you talk about legacy.

There's something different when you go and you change a perception of an organization and you change the perception that a person has about themselves. There's something powerful in that, and at the end of the day, it's probably what I'm most proud of in my career. Just two more questions on you and then we'll get into the twenty twenty one season. There was a fateful night in two

thousand and three. It was the last day of the regular season and Josh McCown, who is the quarterback for the Cardinals, throws a pass that's caught by Nate Pool for a touchdown to win the game in the regular season finale. That win knocked the Cardinals out of the number one spot in the NFL Draft, where they would have taken Eli Manning. Instead, they take Larry Fitzgerald because they dropped to number three. Eli Manning goes to New York. You're in New York and obvious they had plans for Eli.

So you were just with the Giants that one year. Then you come to Arizona and it's year two for Larry Fitzgerald. Larry was twenty years old when he came into the NFL. He had incredible talent, but he was young. He has said many times, Look, I needed to mature, I needed to grow. How did your relationship impact him, do you think and when did you know that Larry

could be elite? Well, I don't think it was hard to see when you first got here and you see Larry on the field that he's got the ability to be elite. You know. It's funny that one of my favorite stories about Larry goes back to really the first weekend that I was here in Arizona and we were practicing, and I invited some of the guys over for dinner, just to kind of get to know guys and connect

with them a little bit, and Larry came over. And I remember when we were sitting down for dinner and my wife she said, just promise me no football talk, all right, We're just here to get to know the guy. I don't want to talk football. My wife's not a big football fan, so she just wanted to kind of

get to know everybody. And so Larry came over and somewhere in the middle of the dinner, there was just something that happened in practice that was kind of, you know, on my mind because I kept looking and talking to him, and so at some point I was just like, hey, Larry in practice today, And of course my wife kicks me under the table, like, come on, we're not going here. But you know, I just told him about something that practiced and I'm like, man, if if you just do this, man,

you were going to be unstoppable on that route. And I remember Larry kind of looking back at me, and you know, that kind of a smile on his face and you gave me this look and he's like, okay, Kurt. But you know, I think that the mindset was kind of simply I'm the last person you need to worry about. And he mentioned in the in the conversation, he's like,

you know, I'm good enough right now. And again, I think the idea was not in arrogance, but simply when you're looking at the rest of the guys, you know, I'm probably not where you need to start in terms of what we're trying to build here. And I remember looking back at him and I'm like, Larry, at the end of the day, do you just want to be good enough? And we just kind of left it there.

So you know, as we progress and as we see things and as we build our relationship, you know, you watch Larry and you watch him start growing, and you watch him start evolving, and you're watching the work that he's doing, and when you talk to him and you have a conversation, he was always willing to apply those things on the field to become great. And you just watch the ascension of Larry Fitzgerald to one of the greatest players that the league has ever seen, and I'll

never forget. Fast forward to two thousand and nine. So Larry was my closest friend on the team, so he knew before anybody else that I was going to retire. I had told him, we had talked about it throughout the middle of the season that I was going to be done. And I can't remember where we were going, but we had gotten on a jet together and had a conversation and I remember him looking at me and he goes, Kurt, you remember that conversation we had, you know,

that first weekend that you were in town. And I'm like, of course, I remember, he goes, I just want you to know that I never forgot that conversation and that idea that from that point forward, I never wanted to just look at things as being good enough. I wanted to be the best. And that to me speaks to who Larry Fitzgerald is is that he was one of

our best players. He would have been one of our best players through the length of his career without a doubt, because of his talent level, the kind of young man he was. But you know, I mean, you know, Larry, he's kind of ahead of his years. He was more mature than most guys that come in at his age, and he made that commitment very early on from that one conversation to go, Okay, I see what kurtse trying to say here. He sees in me something special. Now

I need to tap into it and be great. And we've seen that throughout his career, and I think one of the greatest examples of that was when Bruce arians came here. When I was here, we tried to move Larry inside numerous times, and Larry was just like, I'm not having it. I'm good out here, I'm comfortable out here. I don't have to think as much. Just let me be me out here, and we tried, and we just

could not get him to buy in. Then obviously Bruce comes in, and I don't think Bruce really gave him a choice, but I remember talking to him numerous times through that sequence and He's like, gosh, I hate it in here. It's fast. I'm not comfortable. I don't like it, you know, I don't want to be here playing inside.

But to his credit, he bought in, and he bought in and he became a blocker, and he started to understand the inside, and maybe statistically from a catchstandpoint, he has his greatest year with Bruce Arians when he's inside catching a hundred passes, and talk to him just a couple of years ago, and I remember him going and they're using me outside too much. You know that he got so comfortable back inside. But to his credit that he had the ability to evolve and work to be

great no matter what his role was. And those are the things that I'll remember on why Larry Fitzgerald is one of the greatest that we've ever seen. It's not because of those great spectacular catches we saw back in seven and eight and oh nine. It's because of his ability and his work ethic to go. I'm not satisfied. What is it? You know, I remember a time that Todd Haley challenged him to be a better blocker downfield.

You know a lot of times it was catch, get down or to run after catch, and every time somebody challenged him, he goes, Okay, let me show you I can do this. I can do that. But all those things and that mindset of his is really what's catapulted him to the place where you know, he's a legend of the game. He's one of the greatest that we've ever seen. And I think all the way back to that conversation and how that stuck with him and that imparted something on him that he wanted to be great.

When I talked to Larry or text with Larry, I don't talk football with him, usually asking about the sons or other things, in part because I know he doesn't want to be asked about retirement. And my gut, and I've said this from the middle of last year, as I think he's done, I would be surprised if he plays again. Are you in the same boat, would you be surprised if we see Larry on a football field again. I won't say I'll be surprised with it playing out

as long as it has. I think there's there's a little part of me that goes, why would it play out this long? If he didn't, If he isn't thinking possibly about coming back and looking at the roster and looking at what they've built here, because the only thing that he's playing for anymore is to win a championship.

Is that, you know. I've texted him numerous times and just man, I'm sorry I didn't get you that championship because his greatness has been so great that I just feel like it needs to be anchored with a championship. And I know, you know, although that will not define him, and you know, and he's much bigger than that, I know he still wants that, and you know, it's one of the reasons he's talked about retirement with me for the last three or four years. I don't know, we'll see,

you know. Can I be an integral part of what we're doing? But most important, does this team have a chance to compete? And I really feel like this team is in a position with the guys they brought in, assuming they play up to their potential and stay healthy and all that stuff, to compete. And so that part of me just has me thinking there may just be one more run. But the one thing that I would

say is this isn't like Larry. If Larry was going to come back and play, I kind of expected him to be here day one, you know, not a guy like Shoh. You guys go through the first couple of weeks and then I'll show up in typical Larry fashion.

What I kind of believe is that, you know, he hates the limelight and that he's going to kind of wait for this thing to get going where thirty two teams are practicing and there's all these new storylines, and then he's going to sneak in and go, hey, I'm retiring, I'm done. So nothing is about him in that situation. So yes, everything in me says I think he is done.

But I've just been really surprised that it's played out this long without us knowing that it just keeps kind of that wind of opportunity open that he maybe what you said is exactly how I felt all along, knowing Larry that he doesn't want to talk about it. So in the five year I mean, he's going to be in the Hall of Fame that five year clock. Whether

it starts in August or February, it doesn't matter. I've always thought he's not going to say anything, or if he does, it's just going to be he's going to drop it in some interview in the middle of November. Oh, like, yeah, I'm done. Yeah, I'm done. I'm onto something else. I don't want to bury the lead because you just said something that caught my attention, and that's you think that this Cardinal team has a chance, would you say their

championship caliber or is that a stretch? Where do you view given the division, how tough this division is, Where do you see the Cardinals in twenty twenty one? Well, I mean, I think it all is going to start with Kyler? Is that you know, I've always been a firm believer that that position dictates whether you're a good team or a championship team. And there's no question that we've seen Kyler do some really really special stuff in

his early career. We just haven't seen the consistency level yet to make me say, based on what I've seen the past, just by adding these pieces, they're definitely a championship contender. I need to see more and I need to see consistency from him, because what you know, especially now with the playoffs the way they are and the extra team in there, you got to beat some really really good teams week in and week out to get to a super Bowl. You don't fluke your way into

a super Bowl. You know, we found our way, you know, stumbling through that one, we stumbled through another one. Now we're in the super Bowl. It doesn't happen like that. So that, to me is the biggest question is where does he go in year three? I mean, we've talked about it. I mean, he was one of the front runners for the MVP halfway through the season last year.

So he has been extremely productive. But I still look and say to me, to be a championship caliber quarterback, you have to be able to do it inside the pocket over and over and over again. Yes, you're going to give us some special. I get that, but I don't think you can win consistently with just the special. You got to be more consistent. So that's where I believe it starts. If you get that from Kyler, and

then I saw the second piece and these guys stay healthy. Yeah, you know, because AJ we know he's a great player. JJ been a great player. Rodney Hudson a really good player in this league. You know, three big signings that they had all have been kind of bouncing around, dealing with injuries, haven't been healthy. But I think if those guys stay healthy, you've got a collection of talent here

that can compete with anybody in the league. How it meshes, how it comes together, all of that stuff, the quarterback play, of course, So I don't know, but yeah, I mean I look at this team and see where they were last year, and I say, this is a better football team, without a doubt, this year than they were last year. And so because of that, I have to believe they're going to Pete. You're right, division's gonna be tough. San

Francisco is gonna be much better. Question healthy rams you assume they're going to be better with Matthew Stafford or still gonna be really really good. Seattle's always there. I mean, you know, we probably look at them right now and go they're the least exciting team, but they won the division last year and won twelve games. So it's a really really And that's when I talk about consistency, Right.

You don't have a break, So you don't have two games, especially when you're playing in this division where you go, oh, if we don't play well, we can sneak a couple of wins here. No, you're gonna have to show up and play every week, and so this team could be better than they were last year and have a worse record because the other teams that they're gonna be playing

are better in their schedules. Tough, but I do believe if Kyler makes that jump and you know, grows in that position at least a little bit, this team has a chance to, without a doubt, compete for the playoffs and possibly win the division. The offense, what do you think, Because you talked about Kyler, but in terms of scheme offensive, what do you think we need to see? What changes do the Cardinals need to make for them to take that next step and be a playoff team and be

a championship caliber club. You know, I think Cliff coach Kingsbury is coming into his own as well. I think part of the process over the last couple of years is figuring out how to call plays at the NFL level. Designing plays for success is that, you know, a lot of the stuff that we've seen. I've seen a lot of college esque type stuff, the quick throws, the bubble screens,

all of that stuff, which is great. You're gonna get yards in this league because of the rules by doing that and so you can put up a lot of yards, what really wins games for you is what you do in the red zone, and they've kind of struggled in the red zone outside of where Kyler becomes the dual

thread and he runs and passes. The ability to create opportunities in the red zone and easier opportunities and better opportunities for their offense to be consistently good down there, I believe is going to be you know, the biggest issue with this football team. I'm not worried about them moving the football. I'm not worried about Kyler making a lot of plays. I'm not worried about him being able to score some touchdowns and doing the zone reads in

the red zone. But that to me is where I've seen the biggest questions with this team is it comes to play design, and great design and great playmaking in the red zone is something that they've lacked and something that I think has held them back a little bit. So that's probably the key piece from an offensive standpoint. Then I'm watching for from Kyler and from coach going into this year. We started this podcast talking about the movie, talking about your work as an analyst for NFL Network,

and Westwood One. But there's much more to Kurt Warners. Everybody knows than work. Talk about ministry and charity work that you have gone on right now before we wrap up, Well, the biggest thing that we're doing right now is our passion is our Treasure House. And so Treasure House is a community living facility for young adults with intellectual and

developmental disabilities. All based off of my son who's thirty two now, but suffered brain injury when he was four months old, and once he kind of got through high school, we always wondered what was next, what was his future, what's his purpose? What can he accomplish? And I know that there's a lot of families out there with children like like Zach that wonder what's next, what do they have, what kind of life, and what are the possibilities for them?

How do we dream for our child with the disabilities. So we created Treasure House about five years ago and it's out in Glendale, it's not too far here from the stadium, out on seventy fifth Avenue. We just filled

up our first Treasure House. We've got a waiting list now and so that's kind of where our passion is right now is we want to make sure that every family like ours, that has a child with challenges like ours, has the opportunity to dream bigger and believe in the possibilities of what life can be even amongst those challenges. You know, we say all the time, we've got seven kids, as you know that all of our kids have disabilities.

They all have unique realities, but they all have disabilities and it's just a different way of seeing those things. And so Zach there's certain things that he has challenges to do, but there's also unbelievable potential and unbelievable impact that he has. And so Treasure House is designed to be able to allow that peer group to come together

and impact one another. It's, you know, designed to allow these families and these kids to dream in a way that they've never dreamed before and open up the possibilities. And there is such a huge need not just here in the valley, but around the world, around the country for facilities like this, and so that's where our passion lies is that we're trying to get this one right. We're trying to figure out all the pieces and then we want to branch out and we want to build

Treasure houses and every neighborhood. So there is no family that has to wonder what the next steps are, what the what the big picture purposes for their child. And

so that's our greatest passion right now. That's where we're driving a lot of our emphasis from a charity standpoint, and it's been incredibly rewarding, even though it's been incredibly tough as you figure out these new worlds and what you have to do, but hearing parents come up to you and say how life changing it was to hear these kids talk to their parents when their parents are like, Hey, you're gonna come home for the weekend, and they're like, well,

this is my home. Treasure house is my home now exactly what we wanted to create for our son and for these families, and it's been it's been a labor of love. QB Confidential Yeah dot com. Yes, QB confidential dot com. Um. You know what I've realized over the years is that, man, I want to be able to have a larger impact. I want to be able to, you know, to use my skill and knowledge and experience to be able to impart that on the next generation,

whether it's coaches or players. Because I just think I have a unique knowledge of this game and a way to be able to share that. So I've always felt, well, it's limited. You know. I've got my three or four high school quarterbacks, I got my few guys that I work with every summer. But man, there's all these kids out there that want to learn and want to play at the next level and all of this stuff, and there's a lot of guys out there, quite frankly, that

don't really know what they're coaching. And I always feel bad for these guys that whatever they're paying however much money to go work with these gurus. And I look at these gus and I go, what the heck is he teaching him? And so I bought a camera, touchscreen, video monitor, and I hold up in my office for a number of hours and started building this. And I think it's really incredible. I don't think there's anything else

out there like it. From a quarterback perspective. It's one of those things where we get in the classroom and I talk on the blackboard and kind of teach him football IQ. We of course go on the field because technique is so important to me, and we go and we do some of that. We open up the playbook because I'm so passionate about play design and play understanding and knowing what you're doing on every play. There's a

mindset piece that I call outside the box. A huge part of this process is do you have the right mindset? And then the last piece is kind of a film study where I'm able to dive into NFL film and talk about what I've been talking about in the rest of the platform and kind of show it on the big screen and show people how to watch tape and what I'm looking at. And so it's got so many different facets to it, and now it's a way to be able to reach the masses with this platform and

with my experience. Kurt, You're awesome. You continue to inspire me and so many people. I when we came up with this idea to do the podcast, You're the first person I thought of, So I really appreciate you helping me launch this thing. But again, I just admire your faith, your integrity, and your willingness to tell your story because you know how it can impact others and change lives. So thanks, brother, appreciate my good luck with this whole thing.

All right, Kurt, Thanks so there you have it. Hall of Famer Kurt Warner on the first ever Dave Pass Podcast. We won an hour. We could have gone an hour and a half, maybe two hours. Kurt had NFL network duties, or we certainly could have told a lot more great stories about his days in the NFL and much more. Hopefully you got a ton out of that. There was so much great stuff there. How about what Kurt said to the team at halftime of Super Bowl forty three

nothing right? He said he had to get the team to believe again through his actions, not his words, by starting off the second half with a great drive. Kurt, like me, thinks Larry Fitzgerald will retire and do it quietly. And I loved how Fits years later told Kurt that he never forgot the advice that Kurt gave him during their very first meeting. Hope you enjoyed the first ever Dave Pash podcast, So glad you're along for the ride.

We have some great guests coming up, all pro safety Buddha Baker, Cardinal's head coach, Cliff Kingsbury, outstanding ESPN NFL analysts, Mina Kimes, and many more. For all the updates on the Dave Pash Podcast. You can follow us on Twitter at pash pod or also my personal account at Dave Pash. Thanks again for listening. Hope you enjoyed the first edition of the Dave Pash Podcast with Hall of Famer Kurt Warner