All good points Superfreak. I'll just try to add a couple o' things if you don't mind.
1- I had totally forgotten about that vision thing. Valid point. I can remember him losing contacts during games and fighting to get them back in and always getting new ones and dealing with that mess now that you've reminded me of it.
2-
He was parlayed into a pick to the Bears for him and a mid-late rounder. I believe it gave us a high pick and allowed us to select Springs and Jones in that draft, so I don't think we swapped picks or anything. I think we gave Rick and a conditional pick for the Bears pick and then there might have been another deal to get the picks in place to work that draft perfectly.
3- Rick didn't show what Russell Wilson has in a lot of regards, but over the years as I've learned more and really studied leadership and been in some pretty high leadership positions, I am starting to take the viewpoint that if Rick had the leadership this team has, he wouldn't have been nearly as bad. Sure he probably wouldn't have been a hall of famer, but I think he could have been a Pro Bowl QB. He seemed better in his rookie year than Matt Hass did in his first year as a starter here. Subsequent coaches and the Paul Allen "team" would have taken care of him, and they wouldn't have rushed him out on the field if he wasn't totally ready. I think Rick was sort of a lazy playbook guy (or maybe they were drawing up the infamous napkin plays), and they would have made sure he worked his butt off, and I think with the right coaches he would have. He wasn't a flake or anything. He had just always gotten by on natural talent and done quite well. He ultimately was a good guy though and I can't recall him saying anything bad about anybody, and in that regard I feel like he brought something good to this organization, even if it was just for that rookie year. He brought us some hope for the future and he did it with class and flair with his Jim Zorn like free-wheeler style. It was refreshing and fun to watch.
I'll never forget him getting wrapped up and throwing left handed passes to the RB's just to make sure he didn't go down. Mirer was a gutsy guy. I think he's one of those QB's that could have played safety or slot receiver because he was a tough dude and a really good athlete. He just got the crap knocked out of him. The fact that he stuck around so long though is a testament to the fact that he was a good teammate and gave it an effort. He probably knew as much as anybody else that things were off, and tried to play through it and help whatever team he was on. It was probably a real blow to his ego, but he did it and did it with a smile on his face. I've seen so many highly touted QB's who didn't get their way and just walked away to broadcast or start a "financial services firm" in a year or two because they couldn't handle the awful idea of being somebody else's backup and helping a younger QB out. He sort of reminds me of Ty Detmer. Ty took an awful beating in college (dislocating both shoulders in a bowl game against Texas A&M), but stayed around forever as a backup and a great teammate that coaches and other players loved for his willingness to do whatever was asked of him.
I'll say this as my wrap-up on Mirer. I never once saw him beg out of a game. I can't say that for a few other guys. I never once saw him overexaggerate an injury, in fact, I saw him get busted up pretty darn bad and getting taped up and getting back out there on an ankle that didn't bend, etc. He signified hope to me for the future of the franchise, and his trade brought something we desperately needed, and that brought more hope. Then Holmgren came along and things got steadily better. I would have loved to see Mirer brought along by Holmgren. At the very least I think he would have been a really solid #2 behind Hass or maybe he'd have finally gotten some QB coaching and used his athletic ability to become a guy like Hass. He had that kind of ability and seemed to genuinely love the game like Matt did. This thread has brought back some good memories (I am blocking out the bad ones!).
Viva la Rick.
