By Jim Gehman | Engagement Insider
A Notre Dame quarterback drafted second overall by Seattle in 1993, you set NFL rookie records for pass attempts, completions and yards. After four seasons you were traded to Chicago, and went on to play for Green Bay, the New York Jets, San Francisco, Oakland and Detroit. How would you describe that experience?
“It was interesting. Some places more than others. But I had an opportunity at several of them and I don’t regret any of the choices where I wound up. I was around great people for the most part. Just the situations were all pretty unique.
“The way I looked at it was I got a chance to experience quite a bit more than what some other guys do sticking in one place. But in a perfect world you stay in one place for a decade and settle in. But it’s not always that easy.”
Were there many differences from one organization to the next or were they fairly similar?
“I’d say your the routine is similar everywhere and the culture was different everywhere. There were some similarities with places that had the west coast offense kind of leadership. But the attitude of the team and the position of head coach, some were under more pressure than others, that kind of created some tension. And other times, they were comfortably having some success and they could relax and just play. So similar in certain ways, but I’d say they’re all kind of specific to their town.”
What makes you most proud of your 12-year NFL career?
“I’m probably most proud of surviving. I learned a ton. I was supportive everywhere I could be. I met some great people and have stayed in touch with many.
“When things started getting more difficult it would have been easy to become a negative person, and I fought that really hard. I didn’t want to let a disappointment in a season or a game make me do things that were not repairable. I tried to go about it with as much dignity as I could and things didn’t always work out, but you learn a lot through those experiences. I feel like I got a lot out of it.”
While with the 49ers and the Raiders, you were near the Napa Valley and introduced to winemaking. What led you to get into the business as the proprietor of the Mirror Wine Company? [www.mirrorwine.com]
“I had a business degree and have a marketing mind. I didn’t want to let football be the only thing I thought about as much as I like it, and still help coach kids. I needed a different topic. The timing of being close to Napa Valley as a 30-something-year-old as opposed to maybe 10 years earlier kind of worked in hooking me in a little bit. I met some interesting people and was drawn to it.
“That too is a very competitive industry and one that I work on every day. It’s been fun to meet another entirely different group of people through wine and some of the charity work we’re doing. There’s never a dull moment.”
What have you found to be surprising?
“I knew nothing about the restaurant business and I’ve learned that it’s fairly inconsistent. There are a lot of people moving around. So relationships, as expected, are what kind of help make things happen. Having something unique about your brand or your product helps, but also having the right introduction to the right people is very important.
“I’ve been very lucky to meet the people that have been very supportive of what we’re doing, and other times it’s been hard to break through and get the attention of someone who could really move the needle for us. But overall I’d say we’ve got tremendous support. Things have gone very well and it’s kept me motivated to compete in a different way.”
You’re also the director of the Mirer Family Foundation, a non-profit which focuses on children’s health and education. How important is it for you to give back?
“It’s always been very important. That’s the way I was brought up. That’s the way I went through college. That’s something (my wife, Stephanie, and I) decided to do through the NFL years. The foundation was intended to support some scholarship efforts and children with health and education needs. Support is always going to be needed. We wanted to focus on that.
“And as I’ve learned when the wine business got off the ground, there was a great connection between people who are philanthropic and support charities and also appreciate wine. [Laughs] So we can tie the two together. We’re pretty proud of the amount of people that we’ve been able to impact. And we’re always trying to introduce what we’re doing to the people who might be supportive or might care about it and possibly get involved.
“It’s everything from youth sports to schools and churches to kids that need school supplies and everything else. It’s never ending, and it feels good to make a difference.”