By Jim Gehman, Engagement Insider
You punted for five teams [Patriots, Eagles, Cardinals, Seahawks and Giants] over 20 years [1988 – 2009], playing in 320 regular-season and seven playoff games before making it to a Super Bowl [XLII with the Giants]. Did it feel like a long, long, long time coming, and was the experience what you expected it would be?
“I had never been to the game and (former quarterback) Trent Dilfer, a really good friend of mine, said, ‘You’ve got to prepare yourself because emotionally, this game is going to hit you. You just never know when it’s going to happen.’
“It was really exciting when we first came out of the tunnel and saw all the cameras flashing and just knowing that I’m here at the Super Bowl. It was everything I expected it would be.
“The one thing that I didn’t expect because I didn’t know anything about was if we did win, we would be going down the Canyon of Heroes in New York City. I had no idea what it was. People were telling me, ‘Listen, you’ve got to understand, not everybody goes down the Canyon of Heroes in New York City for a ticker tape parade.’ It was pretty incredible.”
The average length of a player’s career in the NFL is between three and four years. You played 22. How did you not screw up that statistic, and how would you explain your longevity?
“I think the biggest component to that is my health. Always being in great shape and doing things off the field that aren’t really ever noticed or even talked about. That’s doing the massages, taking care of your body, doing things that you really need to do.
“A sports psychologist was another big one that I put a lot of credence in. I worked with a sports psychologist for a good 10 years. Being able to handle those types of pressure situations in games and being able to move on from a bad kick and move on from one game to the next.
“The other thing is that I was good at what I did. I mean, I was a team player. I never took personal statistics as a barometer for my performance. It was mainly, ‘What am I doing to help my team win?’ And if that was knocking six balls inside the 10-yard line and only averaging 30 yards, I didn’t care. As long as we did what we do to win the game. I think the teams and the owners and head coaches saw that and that’s why I lasted as long as I did.”
Last year, Raiders legend Ray Guy opened the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s door for punters. Has the thought of also being enshrined crossed your mind?
“My body of work is done. There’s nothing else I can do to try to convince, if you will, the people that put players in the Hall of Fame. But the characteristics are there. I had the longevity, the Super Bowl, Pro Bowls. But to me, it’s like you have to really do something to transcend the position.
“And basically, I think the directional kicking that I was able to do so well and effectively, I kind of changed the game in a sense when you talk about what everybody’s trying to do – kicking away from all these returners. We were way ahead of the curve when we were directional kicking. I tried to master that craft.
“But you know, if my name is even mentioned in the conversation, I’m okay with it.”
These days, you’re doing much better than okay as an agent for Keller Williams Village Square Realty in Ridgewood, NJ. It’s a second career you began during your first one.
“I started in 2000. I know through all the years that I was in the NFL, and all the life skills seminars I went to, everybody talked about transitioning out of football, to try to find something that you’re going to enjoy to do. I wanted to have something to fall back on so when I was done playing, that I had some experience.
“And it has helped me today because I have over 15 years of experience in real estate. I use everything that I learned from that and what I did in the NFL as far as preparation, discipline, hard work and competiveness. All those things go into the job. That’s why I enjoy doing it.
“I would highly recommend for anybody in the league now to take advantage of all the programs the NFL has, all the internships you can do, and try to find something that you’ll eventually going to want to do when you’re done playing football.”
In the sales world, how beneficial is having name recognition in the same area where you were with the Giants for the final seven years of your career?
“That’s one of the big things with me staying in New Jersey after playing for the Giants and still working for the Giants [pre- and post-game radio analyst]. My name is out there in the community and certainly that always gets me in the door. But once I get in the door, I’ve got to close the deal.
“I just enjoy real estate. I enjoy business. I was in residential for many, many years and now I’ve transitioned out of that into commercial. I just enjoy working with people. I enjoy having my own schedule. And I enjoy the money. It can be a very lucrative profession.”