Trent Dilfer Was A Lousy Teammate
July 26th, 2010
Yesterday on Tampa Bay Sports Central hosted by local electronic sports media czar J.P. Peterson, seen locally on WTOG-TV Channel 44, virtually the entire episode was devoted to former Bucs quarterback Shaun King.
The former star of Gibbs High School in St. Petersburg lived his dream being able to quarterback the Bucs. King joked about how he used to sneak out of his dad’s church services on SUndays (his father was a Baptist minister) so King could watch Bucs road games on TV (home games were virtually always blacked out in those days).
But amid his dream was a nightmare, Trent Dilfer. King, smartly, didn’t completely go off on Dilfer during the interview but it was clear that the two, despite at one time also being colleagues at BSPN, do not exchange Christmas cards.
“He wasn’t very helpful,” King chuckled about the Bucs former interception machine. In short, Dilfer saw King as a threat to his job and as a result, offered little to no assistance to the rookie, who indeed did unseat Dilfer.
Maybe if Dilfer didn’t create more turnovers than a Publix bakery, he wouldn’t have had to worry about King. Instead of worrying about his own putrid play, Dilfer was apparently worried about King. That may explain some things.
Interestingly, Peterson added that Dilfer was not a pleasant guy to deal with from a media perspective in his final years with the Bucs.
King also noted that Dilfer was so thin-skinned, he would be giddy prior to kickoff of home games when Dilfer would learn the defense, and not the offense, would be announced over the public address system in pregame ceremonies. This way, Dilfer wouldn’t be booed by the fans.
Joe finds it galling that Dilfer seemed more concerned about the fans’ reaction to him than, say, that day’s gameplan. How the fans react to you shouldn’t even been on your brain prior to a game!
Later in his Bucs days, King was told that he would no longer be a starter, after he succeeded Dilfer, when the Bucs acquired Brad Johnson.
“I remember that more than I remember the NFC Championship,” King said, referring to the infamous Bert Emmanuel catch/non-catch that may have cost the Bucs a trip to the Super Bowl.
King went on to laud Johnson as being “a great guy” and a solid teammate and King has absolutely no ill feelings toward Johnson.
“I learned a lot from Brad.”
King told Peterson that when he came out of Tulane University, he thought he was going to be drafted by the 49ers in the first round. That didn’t happen and he had a hunch the Bucs might draft him in the second round, which actually came true.
King was so excited when Father Dungy called him on draft day and asked him if he was ready to be a Bucs quarterback, King “threw the phone against the wall” and never was able to answer Father Dungy nor did King hear another word that Father Dungy said.
“I never thought I could be a cheerleader but at that moment, I would have made a major college cheerleading squad,” King said.
Another interesting nugget was that King damned near went to the University of Tennessee. He was about to sign with the Volunteers but balked when he realized Peyton Manning was the quarterback and even at that time, King knew he wouldn’t see the field much with Manning barking signals.
July 26th, 2010 at 8:29 am
Look, I wanted Dilfer gone just as much as anyone, but why does King have to air this dirty laundry now? Is he pissed Dilfer is still employed by ESPN and he got canned (I know Joe, you think that might be a good thing)? Or that, while neither’s career would be described as stellar, that King’s pales in comparison to Dilfer’s? Or maybe it’s that Dilfer probably has a lot more millions in the bank? I dunno, but sure sounds like sour grapes to me.
July 26th, 2010 at 8:43 am
Dilfer has that SuperBowl ring! That, along with thefact that he probably was a jerk, would do it! Of course, I don’t know how helpful I’d be to a guy hired to take my job! I think I might be less than helpful !
July 26th, 2010 at 8:46 am
Joe’s guess: Dilfer really was an ass and King held back.
What comes around goes around.
If memory serves, Hasslebeck said the same things about Dilfer.
July 26th, 2010 at 8:46 am
If we measure QB greatness by SB rings then the score is:
King 0
Dilfer 1
July 26th, 2010 at 8:55 am
King does have a ring, he just didn’t contribute that much to it. He was behind Rob Johnson most of that year.
July 26th, 2010 at 9:17 am
Mauha Deeb finds it interesting that Joe is choosing sides on a nonsensical debate. This article had little substance and a whole lot of opinionated fluff. Whether Dilfer was a jerk or not is not only history but inconsequential just like Shaun King’s career. I am sure another “Penn may or may not sign” story would fill time without having to scour old wounds as this article did.
I am now apologizing. I have become so spoiled over the past couple months with non-stop “Joe” entertainment I have forgotten how ridiculously hard it is to keep our attention during the offseason. Before I shove my foot any further into my mouth, I need to thank you for your existence. You have made this off season more than worthwhile, Joe. Cheers and “Keep on Keepin on”
July 26th, 2010 at 9:19 am
@lightningbucat At QB rating of 30.0 King didn’t contribute at all.
July 26th, 2010 at 9:22 am
Joe does not take a day off Mauha Deeb. Never has since this blog was born roughly two years ago.
And you are welcome. Thanks for being a regular here.
Actually, Joe found this interview with King to be quite enlightening. Why, Dilfer was so concerned about his gameplan, he kvetched over whether he might get booed before the game.
July 26th, 2010 at 9:25 am
Dilfer, so far, still started the most games and most consecutive games for the Bucs in history. Started every game from 1995 -1998. The only real consistent QB on the field we have had. And is # 2 in bucs history for total yards passing
Wow!
July 26th, 2010 at 9:34 am
FYI, Matt Hassellbeck had the same comlaints about Trent Dilfer while he was in Seattle…. So King’s comments werent the first to question Dilfer.
July 26th, 2010 at 9:35 am
@Joe “kvetched”…. You win.
July 26th, 2010 at 9:59 am
Brad Johnson was a great QB for us. And far better than Dilfer.
July 26th, 2010 at 10:09 am
I remember when they drafted Dilfer out of Fresno State.I think he was the 5th overall pick.I was ecstatic and thought we had won the lotto because this guy was so dominant in colledge.Then reality set in and Trent developed those happy feet instead of leadership skills.The way he played,I can understand why he worried about the boobirds.King’s stats might not be as impressive as Dilfer’s,but he was more exciting to watch and more of a team player.If only he had bigger hands to go along with his talent,he could have been one of best in Bucs history.
July 26th, 2010 at 11:18 am
The Ravens liked Dilfer so much they didn’t even invite him back to defend the Super Bowl Title.
July 26th, 2010 at 12:17 pm
@Joe “kvetched”….
was that Heinz or Hunts kvetching?