Rattlers Burley an Exception to their Rule
Patrick Daly
Tuesday January 27, 2004
This season’s notable exception is the signing of Siaha Burley, a former Los Angeles Avenger and Orlando Predator that the Rattlers have brought in as an offensive specialist and potential kick returner.
As a three-sport star at Mesa Westwood High School, Burley is not an unfamiliar face in Arizona. He also spent two years a Mesa Community College before moving on to the University of Central Florida (UCF), where he led the team in receiving for two years.
After spending time in camp with the Seattle Seahawks and St Louis Rams, Burley began his Arena Football career in 2001 with the Predators, in part due to the relationship he had formed with Jay Gruden while at UCF. Burley excelled in his rookie season and earned a spot on the All-Rookie team that year. But after two impressive seasons in Orlando, Burley was traded to Los Angeles and slipped into relative obscurity last season behind the featured weapons in the Avenger offense, offensive specialist Chris Jackson and wide receiver/linebacker Greg Hopkins.
In Arizona, Burley will get a shot to rekindle the offensive aspect of his game after playing both ways in Los Angeles. The first, and perhaps the biggest, test will be to learn a new offense.
“Learning the offense is always a challenge; trying to run the offense the way Danny White wants to run it,” said Burley. “I’m just trying to fit into the system and do what they want to be done.”
With the talent that Burley brings to the table, he has a shot to be a big part of an offense that has the ability to put up points. For Burley, there aren’t many better situations.
“I feel truly blessed to be here in Arizona,” said Burley. “With Danny White’s system and the players that have come through here, and are still here, and the things they’ve been able to do, it’s real exciting for me to be a part of that this year. With the quarterback who it is—Sherdrick Bonner, one of the all-time greats in the arena—you can’t ask for a better situation.”
Like many other players in the AFL, Burley still has his sights set on the NFL. He’s spent time in two camps and at the age of 26 he’s still relatively young, but knows the clock is ticking.
“I’m 26 and I’m not getting any younger,” said Burley. “I would love to play great here in Arizona and win a championship here, but, after that, if they came knocking I would definitely love to get another shot at that.”
The Rattlers will open the season by hosting Burley’s former team, but that’s not why he’s excited to start the season.
“It’s big just because it’s the first game of the season and I have the team’s goals in mind right now,” said Burley. “I’m not even thinking about LA or vendetta, or anything like that. It’s a competitive league this year, and with the playoff spots being slimmed down every game is real important, especially with our division. So I going out there focused on doing what I know I can do.”
While Burley hasn’t been handed the job and will battle Terrance Davis to start at offensive specialist, it’s up to Burley to take advantage of the situation. If he can produce numbers like those he posted in Orlando, Rattler fans are in for one heck of a show.
Patrick Daly has been an Arena Football League enthusiast since he first stumbled across the late-night ESPN broadcasts and has followed the Arizona Rattlers since their inaugural season in 1992. He graduated from Arizona State University with an engineering degree and is currently a member of a web development team for Direct Alliance in Tempe. Patrick currently resides in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler, Arizona with his beautiful wife, son and a very large football helmet collection.
