Red, white, navy, royal blue and nickel would look good on Green

By Anthony Bialy | Friday, February 27, 2009 | ( 258 )

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Quarterback Trent Green’s biggest opponent over his NFL career has been Fate. He’s been prevented from fulfilling potential on uncountable occasions, and he’s unsurprisingly and sadly looking for work again. Just released by the St. Louis Rams, he’ll find a new gig, although it won’t be glamorous work where he’ll actually play. On that note, he’d be a fine choice to back up another Trent in Edwards. Despite his tendency to get constantly bitten by snakes, Green is exactly the sort of reserve the Buffalo Bills should be seeking, as he’s a fading quarterback who hasn’t completely faded.

He’s capable of playing, even if he hasn’t always received that chance. Green, a Super Bowl-winning (backup) quarterback (to Kurt Warner), has tossed for 28,475 yards, with 162 touchdowns against a relatively low 114 interceptions; even his 24-pick 2001 couldn’t ruin the decent ratio. His career rating of 86.0 is above average, which is also how his career would be classified.

Unfortunately for Green, being great is not to be. He’s had a star-crossed career, most famously during his first spell with the St. Louis Rams when he suffered a brutal knee injury that started The Kurt Warner Story. But that only began the pain: The Indiana product has also suffered two horrible concussions, one as a Kansas City Chief and the other with the Miami Dolphins. Worse, each began a sequence of events that ultimately led to his departure from both respective teams. Getting hurt is bad enough, and finding oneself subsequently traded or released is like contracting the flu on your birthday and then watching someone else eat your cake.

And injuries are only one of the reasons why he’s bounced around, as teams have been sluggish about recognizing or respecting his abilities. His next stint will be his eighth with a pro team, including two in St. Louis and one with British Columbia of the Crisp Lager Football League. The indignity of being cut by the B.C. Lions must certainly serve as Green’s all-time personal low, football or otherwise.

He threw one pass in his first four NFL seasons; it took him years to prove he was a worthwhile player, and once he did he was continually afflicted with sidelining pain. And it’s too late to change. Green turns 39 in July, meaning now is not precisely a fine moment for an oft-wounded quarterback to begin anew. Unlike the Jeff Garcias of the world, Green isn’t young for his age.

Green should be at the point where he accepts that he’s a permanent backup; that decision would create an opportunity for the Bills, as he’d be the kind of veteran they’d seek if they’re seeking a veteran. No one would reasonably call for Green to permanently start over Edwards even if the latter played badly once or twice, and yet the elder player could step in competently if the incumbent missed a few games with injury; that’s exactly what a franchise wants from a second-stringer.

He could also fill in on a hardcore crisis basis if Edwards struggled beyond belief for at least a month, serving as a stopgap until management began searching for a permanent starting quarterback solution this time next year. Either way, Green would likely only last a season and maybe two with the Bills, but he has to be used to being used in such a way; he may as well accept his fortune, a recognition that would benefit a team in need of a quarterback who’s past his not-always-that-great good days.

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	No.1	10:12 AM 02/27/2009

	What are you smoking A.B.? Been hangin out with Marshawn and his buds lately? Trent Green is what, 39 years old? His stats when...


	No.2 ba bye	10:50 AM 02/27/2009

	I'm probably too dumb to understand the brilliant strategy of the Bills front office, but why did they cut Dockery and Royal...


	No.3 ddd	10:54 AM 02/27/2009

	Trent Green is going to retire. My view on the whole Dockery thing is that the Bills should have had replacement in place...