Warner has Browns' respect, attention

12.01.2007

There's a little gray in the beard, a little gray in the hair.

A little left in the tank, too.

And while it's been six years since Kurt Warner won his second MVP award and made his third Pro Bowl appearance, the Browns are treating their preparation for Sunday's game like they're going against the same Warner they've always seen.

"This guy threw for almost 500 yards last week," Browns coach Romeo Crennel said. "I hope that wore his arm down to tell you the truth, but I'm not counting on it."

At 36, Warner is again piloting a high-powered offensive attack. The loss of second-year quarterback Matt Leinart to a broken collarbone in early October has given Warner a chance to be the full-time starter for a talented Cardinals team, and he's making the most of the opportunity.

In last week's wild overtime loss to the 49ers, he threw for 484 yards, a career high in what Warner has turned into a remarkable career.

"I kind of feel like a kid again," Warner said.

Warner is one of the most efficient passers in NFL history. He's one of the game's great stories, too, having worked his way through the Arena Football League with the Iowa Barnstormers before a twist of fate -- and a twist of Trent Green's knee -- landed Warner as the starter for the 1999 St. Louis Rams team that won the Super Bowl.

Warner was NFL MVP in 1999 and again in 2001.

"I was in high school," Brodney Pool said. "He was on fire. It was The Greatest Show on Turf. I had a lot of fun watching those guys."

What Pool and his Browns teammates have watched this week is a quarterback who has a lot of talent to work with and still has a little swagger, too. Eight different players had at least 2 catches during his record-setting game last week, his third career game of more than 400 yards.

For the season, he's completing 62 percent of his passes and has posted a QB rating of 99 or higher three times this month.

"He can make all the throws," Browns defensive coordinator Todd Grantham said. "He understands coverages and where to go pre-snap. He has talented weapons that make plays.

"He's a dangerous guy that's playing well right now. Obviously, we have to try to disrupt and not let him play as well as he did last week."

With talented receiving options like Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin at his disposal, Warner uses his smarts as much as his touch to diagnose mismatches and put his playmakers in advantageous positions.

"He definitely knows right away where he's going with the ball, and he gets rid of it quickly," said Daven Holly, who will start again at cornerback if Eric Wright can't play. "We need to disrupt him, give him some different looks, try to keep him from finding a rhythm."

"That's when (Warner) was at his best," said Ryan Tucker, a Rams offensive lineman during Warner's MVP seasons. "He'd get in a groove, get guys going with him and he'd hit them in stride, let them make big plays."

That he's still doing it, Tucker said, comes as no surprise.

"The guy takes care of himself," Tucker said. "He loves the game of football and works hard at it. Nothing he does surprises me."