Warren Moon: How to Handle Being on the Bench

One of the NFL's all-time greats, Warren Moon will be contributing a weekly column to NFLHS.com this season. An outstanding quarterback at every level, Moon played 17 years in the NFL and six years before that in the CFL. He owns the NFL record for most passes completed in a season (404, 1991), is second in NFL history in passing yards-per-game (527, vs. Kansas City, Dec. 16, 1990), and stands third in the NFL record books in passing attempts and completions. The 1977 Pac 8 Player of the Year for the University of Washington and an All-American at Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, Moon is not only a leader on the field. He was named the NFL Man of the Year in 1989 for the tremendous work he does with numerous charitable organizations.

I think there are two situations for kids that are playing behind someone. In one, you are behind someone that is actually better than you, someone who is more experienced than you are and deserves to be in that position. In the second case, the person who is playing ahead of you is there for any number of reasons, but not for on-the-field reasons.

In the first case, it's best for you to try to gain as much information and ask as many questions as you possibly can of that person. Hopefully the player in front of you is a team-oriented person that's going to help you out and not feel threatened that you're going to take his job. Every situation that I've been in as a starter, I've tried to help the guy behind me because I've always wanted that guy to be in my corner. I've always wanted him to be supportive of me.

I remember when I first came into professional football, in Canada, I had a guy in front of me who was 36-years-old, a guy named Tom Wilkinson. I was much better athletically than him, but he was so much more experienced in the game, and especially the Canadian game, I didn't have any problem sitting behind him and watching him play and how he prepared for games. Many of the things I learned about being a professional, I learned from him. I was patient, even though I knew that talent-wise I was better than him already. But there's a lot more to winning and being successful than just talent, especially in playing the quarterback position.

I sat behind Tom for one full season, then we began sharing time, and when he retired I became the full-time starter. But I thought it was the perfect situation for me to transition into the professional game to have someone like that ahead of me, and he was very receptive to helping me. He was just that type of guy. And I think I learned from him that if there was ever a situation where someone was behind me, I would help that person out.

When I was in Houston, two young guys by the name of Cody Carlson and Bucky Richardson were two young quarterbacks behind me that I was more than willing to help out any way I possibly could. It's not like I could go out and correct every last mistake they were making, but if I saw something that I could give them a hint on, I'd do that. And if they ever asked me questions, I definitely answered them as fully as possible.

I also always tried to set a good example with my work ethic and habits on the field and how I prepared for each game. Brad Johnson in Minnesota and Jon Kitna in Seattle went on to play pretty well after I left those situations, so I like to think I helped have an impact on those players as well.

In the situation where you're sitting behind a player for non-football reasons, it can be difficult. I was in that situation my first year of high school football: the player ahead of me was a senior so he had more experience, but this was only B-level high school football so experience wasn't really something you really needed to be playing. But I just kept telling myself to be patient, and my Mom told me the same thing, to keep trying, my chance would come.

Every player has to remember and especially at the quarterback spot that an injury can happen at any time, and you're only one play away from being in the game. You have to prepare every week like you're going to play. You might not get as many reps, but you can do film study, study the game plan, and how much work you do after practice so when that time does come, you're ready to go.

Previous Articles:
Warren Moon: A Lot to Think About
Warren Moon: De La Salle - Poly Preview
Warren Moon: Improving Your Athleticism
Warren Moon: Fundamentals Are Key
Warren Moon: Success Through Adversity
Warren Moon: Don't Underestimate Chemistry
Warren Moon: How I Was Recruited
Warren Moon: Mid-Season Report