Flutie retires after 21 years of pro football

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (May 15, 2006) -- Doug Flutie retired from pro football, ending a 21-year career in which the Heisman Trophy winner puzzled both opposing defenses and his own coaches with his unconventional style at quarterback.

The decision by the 43-year-old Flutie was announced by the New England Patriots, for whom he played five games last season.

Flutie spent 12 seasons in the NFL and also played in the USFL and the Canadian Football League. He won the CFL's Most Outstanding Player award six times and the league's Grey Cup championship three times.

Flutie finishes with 14,715 passing yards and 86 touchdowns in the NFL, spending most of his time as a backup. Last season, he attempted just 10 passes and converted the league's first drop kick for an extra point since the 1941 NFL title game.

Rummyfan, "Good Luck Doug Flutie! While never a superstar, he certainly made the most of his talent." kesg, "He was always an okay backup, but not starter material."

Heisman Trophy Winner: 1984, Flutie would leave school as the NCAA’s all-time passing yardage leader with 10,579 yards, and was a consensus All-American as a senior. He earned Player of the Year awards from UPI, Kodak, The Sporting News and the Maxwell Football Club. Flutie started his professional career in the United States Football League (USFL) with the New Jersey Generals. The USFL folded in 1986, and Flutie (until his retirement in the 2006 NFL offseason ) was the league's last active player. Although his Canadian football career lasted only eight years, Doug Flutie is one of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play Canadian football. In 1990 Flutie signed with the BC Lions for a two-year contract reportedly worth $350,000 a season. At the time he was the highest paid CFL player in the league. Flutie struggled in his first season. However, the following year, Flutie shone and was rewarded with a reported million dollar a year salary with the Calgary Stampeders. Flutie won his first Grey Cup in 1992 with the Stampeders. During his last years in Calgary, Flutie's backup was Jeff Garcia, who would later go on to star for the NFL's San Francisco 49ers. He would go on to win two more Grey Cups with the Toronto Argonauts, in 1996 (The Snow Bowl) and 1997, before signing with the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League in 1998. Prior to his final two Grey Cup victories with the Argonauts, Doug Flutie was hampered by the opinion, supported by the media, that he was a quarterback who could not win in cold weather. After an early playoff loss where he refused to wear gloves in freezing temperatures, Doug Flutie in later years adapted to throwing with gloves in cold weather. His career CFL statistics include 41,355 passing yards and 270 touchdowns. He holds the professional football record of 6,619 yards passing in a single season. He still holds 4 of the CFL's top 5 highest single-season completion marks, including a record 466 in 1991. His 48 touchdown passes in 1994 remains a CFL record. He earned three Grey Cup MVP awards, and was named the CFL's Most Outstanding Player a record six times (1991-1994, and 1996-1997). Doug Flutie is a figure of national pride to Canadians and Canadian expatriates (this despite having been born and raised in the United States), and has been the subject of a song by the Canadian band Moxy Früvous. Flutie's success in the National Football League coupled with the revoking of the "marquee player" exemption in the Canadian Football League's salary cap, which allowed one player to be exempt from counting against the CFL's salary cap on each team, resulted in a string of star quarterbacks leaving the CFL and going to the NFL, such as Jeff Garcia and Dave Dickenson. Doug Flutie became the Buffalo Bills' starting quarterback when the Bills started the 1998 season 1-3. In his first start as a Bill, he passed for 2 TDs and led a 4th quarter comeback against the Indianapolis Colts, on October 11, 1998. The following week, Flutie scored the winning touchdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars by rolling out on a naked bootleg to enter the endzone, just as time expired. The Bills' success continued with Flutie at the helm, as his record as a starter that season was 8-3. The Bills were eliminated in the first round by the Dolphins, as fumbles and poor officiating gave Flutie his first, and only, loss against both Jimmy Johnson and Dan Marino. Flutie was selected to play in the 1998 Pro Bowl. In 2001 Flutie signed with the San Diego Chargers, who went 1-15 in 2000. After opening 3-0, the Chargers slumped and were 4-2 going into Week 7, when Flutie's Chargers met Rob Johnson's Bills. Johnson took advantage of the weak Charger defense and passed for 310 yards with 1 TD and 1 interception, and ran for 67 yards and 1 TD. (The Chargers are the only team Johnson has passed for 300 yards against.) However, Doug prevailed as the new ex-Bill broke a sack attempt and ran 13 yards for the game-winning touchdown. San Diego would finish 5-11, while the Bills finished 3-13. Flutie was Drew Brees' backup in 2002. In 2003, Flutie replaced a struggling Brees when the Chargers were 1-7. The 41 year-old became the oldest player to score two rushing touchdowns in a game, the first player over 40 to accomplish that feat. He also became the oldest AFC Offensive Player of the Week, winning the award for the fourth time. Flutie's record as starter that year was 2-3. As of 2004 Doug Flutie has passed for 58,150 yards in his 20 year professional football career. Flutie was released from the Chargers on March 13, 2005. Flutie surprised many when he signed with the New England Patriots instead of the New York Giants. He has been the backup behind Tom Brady and come in several times at the end of games to take a few snaps. Flutie has a 37-28 record as an NFL starter, including a 22-9 record in home games. Television football commentator John Madden once said, "Inch for inch, Flutie in his prime was the best QB of his generation." In a December 26, 2005 game against the New York Jets, Flutie was sent in late in the game as quarterback. The Jets also sent in their back-up quarterback, Vinny Testaverde. This was the first time in NFL history that two quarterbacks over the age of 40 competed (Testaverde was 42, Flutie was 43). In the Patriots' regular season finale against the Miami Dolphins on January 1, 2006, Flutie successfully drop kicked the ball for an extra point, something that had not been done in a regular-season NFL game since 1941. The ball went straight through the uprights for the extra point. Patriots head coach and football historian Bill Belichick made comments that suggested that the play was a retirement present of sorts for his veteran quarterback, although Flutie had made no comment on whether or not 2005 would be his last season [4]. The Patriots would go on to lose the game against Miami 28-26 after failing to make a last minute 2-point conversion. It was his first kick attempt in his NFL career. During the 2006 offseason, Flutie's agent, Kristen Kuliga, stated that he was interested in returning to the Patriots for another season and was widely expected to return, despite his age. However, on 15 May 2006, Flutie announced his decision to hang up the helmet at the age of 43 and retire [5]. Flutie will go on to work as an analyst for ABC and ESPN for their college football broadcasts. Heisman Trophy Winner 1984 CFL's Most Outstanding Player 1991-1994 Calgary Stampeders Starting Quarterbacks 1992-1995 Toronto Argonauts Starting Quarterbacks 1996-1997 CFL's Most Outstanding Player 1996-1997 Grey Cup MVP 1992 Grey Cup MVP 1996-1997 NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award 1998 New England Patriots Starting Quarterbacks 1988 Buffalo Bills Starting Quarterbacks 1998-2000 San Diego Chargers Starting Quarterbacks 2001 Not a superstar? OK.

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