Age: 34
12th
season in pro football (11th active), 4th with Panthers
College: Notre
Dame
Height: 6’3” Weight: 220
Prelude:
Beuerlein was
chosen by the Raiders in the fourth round of the 1987 NFL draft. A drop-back
passer with a good arm and limited mobility, he started 15 games in his first
two years with modest results. He held out prior to the 1990 season, which
soured the Raiders on him and, after not being activated for any games that
year, Beuerlein was traded to Dallas. When starting QB Troy Aikman was injured
in ’91, Beuerlein started the season’s last four games, all wins, plus another
victory in the postseason (the only one of his career). He backed up Aikman in
1992 and then moved on to the Cardinals, where he started in 1993 and passed
for 3164 yards and 18 TDs, with 17 interceptions, but clashed with Head Coach
Buddy Ryan in ’94 and had a lesser year. Beuerlein was chosen by the
Jacksonville Jaguars in the 1995 expansion draft and was that franchise’s first
starting quarterback, but lost out to Mark Brunell and was dealt to Carolina,
where he initially backed up Kerry Collins in 1996 and ‘97. He took over for
Collins in 1998 and completed a career-high 63.0 percent of his passes while
throwing for 2613 yards and 17 TDs.
1999 Season Summary
Appeared in all
16 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Passing
Attempts – 571
[2]
Most
attempts, game – 47 at Washington 10/3, vs. Detroit 10/24
Completions –
343 [1]
Most
completions, game – 29 at Green Bay 12/12
Yards – 4436 [1]
Most yards,
game – 373 at Green Bay 12/12
Completion
percentage – 60.1 [8]
Yards per
attempt – 7.8 [3]
TD passes – 36
[2]
Most TD
passes, game – 5 vs. New Orleans 1/2
Interceptions
– 15 [8, tied with Peyton Manning & Elvis Grbac]
Most
interceptions, game – 3 at San Francisco 10/17, at Atlanta 10/31
Passer rating
– 94.6 [2]
300-yard
passing games – 5
200-yard
passing games – 15
Rushing
Attempts – 27
Most
attempts, game – 4 (for 8 yds.) at Green Bay 12/12
Yards – 124
Most yards,
game – 20 yards (on 3 carries) at St. Louis 11/14, (on 2 carries) vs. San
Francisco 12/18
Yards per
attempt – 4.6
TDs – 2
Scoring
TDs – 2
Points – 12
Awards & Honors:
Pro Bowl
Panthers went
8-8 to finish second in the NFC West.
Aftermath:
After his big
year in 1999, Beuerlein had a lesser performance with a losing team in 2000,
passing for 3730 yards and 19 touchdowns while giving up a career-high 18
interceptions. He was released by the Panthers and moved on to Denver, where he
was inactive for all of 2001 due to an elbow injury that required surgery. He
spent two more years with the Broncos, coaxed back by Head Coach Mike Shanahan
for the last one in 2003, and brought savvy into his role as backup. Overall,
Beuerlein lasted a total of 16 seasons, passing for 24,046 yards and 147
touchdowns, with most of his starts (51) coming with the Panthers, where he
completed 60.4 percent of his passes for 12,690 yards and 86 TDs while giving
up 50 interceptions. Tough and an able passer, his lack of mobility was a key
limiting factor.
--
Highlighted Years features players who were consensus
first-team All-League* selections or league* or conference** leaders in the
following statistical categories:
Rushing:
Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Passing: Yards,
Completion Pct., Yards per Attempt, TDs, Rating
Receiving:
Catches, Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Scoring: TDs,
Points, Field Goals (min. 5)
All-Purpose:
Total Yards
Defense:
Interceptions, Sacks
Kickoff
Returns: Average
Punt Returns:
Average
Punting:
Average
*Leagues
include NFL (1920 to date), AFL (1926), AFL (1936-37), AAFC (1946-49), AFL
(1960-69), WFL (1974-75), USFL (1983-85)
**NFC/AFC
since 1970
