Kyle Boller
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| Kyle Boller | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth | June 17, 1981 |
| Place of birth | Newhall, California |
| Position(s) | Quarterback |
| College | California |
| NFL Draft | 2003 / Round 1/ Pick 19 |
| Statistics | |
| Team(s) | |
| 2003–present | Baltimore Ravens |
Kyle Bryan Boller (born June 17, 1981 in Burbank, California) is an American football quarterback with the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League.
Contents |
[edit] High School career
Boller began his high school career at William S. Hart High School in Newhall, California. At Hart High School, he was named California High School Player of the Year, throwing for 4,841 yards and 59 touchdowns in his senior season.
[edit] College career
As a college player at California, Boller started slowly but excelled in his junior season. In 1999, playing at Cal, he completed just 38.6 percent of his passes.
Boller was also prone to injury, and did not start the 1999 Big Game due to an injury against Oregon. His second year was especially disastrous, as various injuries on the team combined with poor coaching resulted in a 1-10 season for Cal.
Boller's stock as a draft pick took off after his junior season, which was credited to head coach Jeff Tedford, who replaced Tom Holmoe as head coach. Tedford came with experience in coaching quarterbacks, and Boller's completion rate noticeably improved with a better supporting cast of players.
[edit] Professional career
Boller became the Ravens' first round draft pick in 2003 NFL Draft (19th overall pick), and he was the starting QB for the Ravens until the 2006 season, when he was replaced by Steve McNair. He was the second quarterback taken out of the Pac-10 conference after the Cincinnati Bengals selected Carson Palmer from USC with the first overall pick.
Boller started the first 11 games of the 2003 season until he injured his thigh in a loss to the St. Louis Rams. He started every game at quarterback for the Ravens 2004 season, posting four games with quarterback ratings over 100. He had his best game of his young career against the New York Giants on December 12, 2004, throwing four touchdowns, no interceptions, and passing for 219 yards as Baltimore trounced New York 37-14 at M&T Bank Stadium. Boller was 14-11 as the Ravens starter entering the 2005 NFL season, and he is currently 18-16 for his total career, with an impressive 13-4 home record. He posted the highest passer rating of his young career at 136.8 against the Green Bay Packers on December 25, 2005, throwing three touchdowns, no interceptions, completing 19 of 27 of his passes and amassing 253 yards, as Baltimore defeated the Green Bay Packers 48-3 at M&T Bank Stadium on Monday Night Football.
Boller then followed up that game with another strong performance, throwing 3 touchdowns in knocking the Minnesota Vikings out of contention for the 2006 NFL Playoffs, but finished the season with a poor performance against the Cleveland Browns. Boller posted a quarterback rating of under 30 in that game, just as he did following the only other time in his career that he achieved a quarterback rating of above 100 in two consecutive games.
[edit] Being Benched
Steve McNair, former Tennessee Titans QB, was traded to Baltimore in 2006. Coach Brian Billick declared McNair the starter instead of having the two compete for the job, citing McNair's credentials as a highly successful, Pro Bowl quarterback in Tennessee. In week 6 of the 2006 season, McNair was sacked by Carolina Panthers defenders Mike Rucker and Chris Draft. The result of that play was a mild concussion and a neck injury. McNair left the game and would not return. Boller came in to replace him in the final seconds of the first quarter, and completed 17 of 31 passes for a 58% completion percentage, 3 touchdowns, 226 yards, and one interception. Faced with a 9-point deficit with 5:10 remaining, Kyle Boller connected with Mark Clayton for a 62-yard TD pass to start a come-back attempt. When the Ravens defense gave up their second touchdown of the day, Boller was called upon to score again. This time, he faced 68 yards and was given 4:08 to score a touchdown. He drove down the field for 68 yards and capped off his drive with a 7-yard touchdown pass to tight end Todd Heap. The Panthers were then able to run out the clock before Boller could get back on the field, and the Ravens lost 23 - 21. He also attempted and completed 3 passes on November 26th versus the Pittsburgh Steelers for 21 yards. Boller's solid off-the-bench performance is evidence to some that he might eventually emerge from under McNair's guidance as a competent starting NFL quarterback.
[edit] Notable
- Before being drafted, Boller impressed scouts in the combine by throwing the ball 65-yards from one knee through the uprights.
- Boller's total yards his senior year under Tedford were greater than his first three years as a starting quarterback combined.
- The Ravens initially attempted to trade up to draft Marshall quarterback Byron Leftwich, but instead traded two picks (2003 2nd round pick and 2004 1st round pick) to the New England Patriots for their 2003 1st round pick (#19 overall) which the Ravens used to draft Boller.
- Boller wore uniform #8 in 2003, as incumbent quarterback Chris Redman wore #7, but when Redman left following the '03 season, Boller switched back to #7, which he wore in college. His favorite quarterback growing up also wore #7 - John Elway.
- Boller's father, three uncles, grandfather, and great-grandfather were all firefighters.
[edit] Trivia
- Majored in American studies while at UC Berkeley, but did not graduate.
- Part-owner of the Hollywood Fame, a 2006 expansion franchise of the American Basketball Association.
- Has Dated Actress Tara Reid, who has also dated fellow football players Tom Brady and Jeremy Shockey
[edit] External links
| Preceded by: Jeff Blake |
Baltimore Ravens Starting Quarterbacks 2003-2005 |
Succeeded by: Steve McNair |
