NFL backup QBs have the best jobs in sports

Being a quarterback in the NFL is a hazardous occupation these days. Scan the injury report each week and you will find it littered more and more frequently with the bodies of starting quarterbacks. And why wouldn't they be hurt? What other job in America calls for a person to be mauled by 330-pound men while others cheer? Being a quarterback during a linebacker blitz must be what it feels like to be the new guy in prison.

On Monday night, I watched Donovan McNabb stagger off the field like Mark Fuhrman leaving the Million Man march. These days, being injured is part of the job. I'll pass. Call me a sissy, a nancy boy or a pansy, but the allure of a Super Bowl ring isn't enough for me to do my job with a hernia and a bruised sternum.


A short time after McNabb walked off the field, Mike McMahon walked onto it. I quickly re-thought my stance on who had the better job on the team. McMahon has the easier gig by a mile. Backup quarterback may be the best job in the country this side of Serena Williams' personal masseur. McMahon may not be adored by millions of people or the have millions of dollars in his bank account, but he has something that McNabb can only dream about: good health.

Jim Sorgi of the Indianapolis Colts has the privilege of watching a first-ballot Hall of Famer in Peyton Manning every week. He also "earns" $305,000 a year doing what most of us drop a couple of hundred bucks to do, except he has a much better seat. Sorgi can walk around Indianapolis shouting, "We are undefeated!" What he should be yelling is, "THEY are undefeated!" as well as, "Don't forget to stretch, Peyton!" Unless he has a "cleanest uniform" clause in his contract, I doubt that Sorgi will reach any incentives. Good thing he got that $61,200 signing bonus when he did. It's a tricky operation this backup quarterback position.

For every Ben Rothlisberger, there is a Brooks Bollinger. Big Ben parlayed his shot at the big-time into super stardom. Bollinger parlayed his shot into blood in his urine and sore ribs. Last year, Bollinger lived in general anonymity. He saw a sliver of playing time in Week 11 and completed 5 of 9 passes. New Yorkers nodded their heads and murmured, "Not bad." This year, after playing in four games for the Jets, Bollinger has been sacked 12 times, has thrown four interceptions and has New Yorkers shaking their heads and murmuring, "Not good!"

Bengals' QB Jon Kitna has been sacked 171 times in his nine-year career. This season he hasn't been sacked at all. He hasn't played a down, but earns a base salary of $1 million a year. Where do I sign?
source : sportsillustrated.cnn.com