Rashied Davis: From ArenaBowl to Super Bowl
Tim Ball
Monday January 29, 2007
Rashied Davis is one of those athletes that truly define a role model. From a skinny inner-city kid that never played high school football, who went from Junior College to a starter at San Jose State and a star that electrified the ever growing Arena Football League.
Now a Chicago Bears favorite, Davis is still focused and down to earth; a story that will motivate anyone of any age.
Whether watching his story play out on ESPN or in the Chicago media scene, Davis is the kind of athlete that brings sports a good name.
What is a loss for the Arena Football League was a pickup of great value for Chicago’s storied NFL franchise.
Davis has shown why being a star in the AFL translates easily into being a productive and valuable member of a great NFL team.
In Arena Football, the players are more than part of a team. They are part of the history of a league being recognized as excellent in its own rights.
Davis has joined a long line of AFL players doing well in the NFL.
First impressions
A confident young man preparing himself on the sidelines of a 2002 pre-season San Jose SaberCats practice, Davis was surprisingly polite as we met for the first time. While staying ready riding an exercise bike, never once did he take his eyes off the on-field action for anything longer than a split-second.
“You’ll have to excuse me,” said Davis, as he realized he was ignoring me. “I’m trying to make this team and I have to be ready when the coaches call me.”
(I wonder now, how far off he was looking.)
After practice, he introduced me to the “important players” I’d probably want to interview on that stacked SaberCats roster that included stars like Mark Grieb, Bob McMillen, James Roe, James Hundon, Clevan Thomas, Omarr Smith and Barry Wagner (to name just a few).
The graciousness of that incident sticks with me to this day. And as I look back on the times I spent with this great athlete as part of my covering the SaberCats, it’s no surprise that Davis is an important player on the biggest stage in all of football as he joins the Bears to play for the Vince Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl XLI.
A talent realized, Davis made the ’02 SaberCats team on the practice squad and within three seasons, would be the most exciting player in the AFL scoring more than 40-touchdowns receiving, rushing and in kick returns in 2005. The same year he was signed to the Chicago Bears roster for kick-returns, special teams and cornerback. Now, an important part of a talented receiving corps for the Bears offense, Davis is where he should be.
In an 89-41 win over the Colorado Crush on April 22, 2005, Davis scored seven touchdowns, three of which were catches of 40-plus yards. His reputation in Chicago as a clutch receiver was earned by hard work and success in the fast-paced Arena Football League.
Rattlers fans remember well it was Davis that stopped Hunkie Cooper from making the game winning catch in the endzone in ArenaBowl XVIII, by knocking down a Sherdrick Bonner pass that would have secured the championship for the Rattlers as time expired on the play.
Still doing it
As a member of the 2006 Chicago Bears, Davis competed and won the spot for the third receiver in the slot position. It was crucial catches from Davis that set-up the game-winning field goal by Robbie Gould that propelled the Bears to home field advantage throughout the playoffs in a 34-31 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers late in the season. His 30-yard reception from quarterback Rex Grossman against the Seattle Seahawks in the second round of the playoffs in overtime set up another game-winning situation as Gould drilled another field goal in a 27-24 thriller that had Chicago fans delirious over the pickup from the Arena Football League.
Davis is featured so often in Chicago newspapers his name is now a household word to the most demanding football fans in the sport.
As NFL defenders know all too well, catching up with Davis is not easy. And not just on the field. His cell phone filled to overflowing, I had to do an end around and go through his agents Ryan Morgan and Wynn Silberman to slow him down.
As usual, the interaction with this most amazing athlete was worth it. The following interview was held over several conversations back and forth.
Let’s talk:
ArenaFan (AF): Congratulations on a great season. How does it feel to be going to the Super Bowl?
Rashied Davis (RD): Kind of crazy. Since this is my first trip, I’ll have to get back to you on the whole experience.
AF: Are you ready for the pressure? The media hype, the game and the history of it all?
RD: Is anyone? Our coaches prepare us well. This is a goal realized and that is what we set out to do from the start of the season. Once the game starts, it is going to go down to who makes the plays and who doesn’t.
AF: How does it feel to make the clutch catches that helped put the Bears in this position?
RD: It doesn’t happen by one player. The line is blocking, my teammates are spreading the field for me to get open and the quarterback has to make the throw. I just concentrate on doing what’s expected of me when my number is called. This is a team sport and no one can accomplish anything without everyone doing what they’re supposed to do. We accomplished this with a great team effort.
AF: Is there much difference between the AFL and the NFL? Is the pressure greater?
RD: Yes and no. The NFL is much more pressure because there are so many guys competing for the same position and the intensity of the league comes at you in many ways. There is more pressure on and off the field. But football is football. The AFL is tough to play because the field and the game are compressed. You have talented players in a very small space. In the NFL the pressure comes from many more directions. The NFL itself, the history, the fans and the level of talent on every team is amazing.
AF: Do you think the AFL helped you make the Bears?
RD: Of course it did. It gave me the opportunity I have with the Bears. The skills I used in the AFL are still the same ones no matter.
AF: Did you have to learn, or better yet, re-learn the outdoor big field game?
RD: No. I had to learn the schemes and the way the Bears do things. Football is football. Flag, high school, college, you still have to make the plays.
AF: This brings up the issue that you never played high school football. How, or who, got you into football?
RD: My friends knew I had talent. I was a runner and they encouraged me to try-out for my Junior College team. I went on from there to San Jose State. I didn’t get a call from an NFL team at that time and the SaberCats knew who I was, since they are in San Jose.
AF: Are you a role model? Your life story reads like a movie? Losing your father as a child. Being raised in LA’s inner city and being a star in both the AFL and now with the Bears.
RD: I have a great family and it was good friends that helped me make good choices. It’s so easy to quit in this life and look for excuses for things that go wrong. If anything comes of my experiences that encourages other people, it is to love your family and have good friends.
AF: Which brings me to the point: who on the Bears helped you go from cornerback to receiver? The coaches? Any players?
RD: Without doubt. Mushin Muhammad was a great support. Nathan Vasher and Brian Urlacher told the coaches I had the skills to be receiver. The coaches gave me the opportunity after the 2005 season to compete for that position.
AF: Who on the SaberCats encouraged you?
RD: James Hundon, James Roe helped me learn the offensive specialist position, Omarr Smith and Clevan Thomas on defense. GM and offensive coordinator Terry Malley, defensive coach Michael Church and head coach Darren Arbet are special to me as they gave me the chance to excel in the AFL. It’s hard to put it into words really and there were many guys that helped me. It is a special team and a special organization.
AF: And the rest is history?
RD: (Laughing) The rest is hard work.
AF: And how has your wife adjusted to life in the NFL, especially in a town like Chicago?
RD: She is my biggest supporter. She’s been with me through a lot. She did get to meet Oprah and also met Will Smith and his wife Jada. So far we have adjusted to life here in the Chicago area.
AF: I read a story in a Chicago newspaper that she got a new Mercedes and you are still driving your ten-year old Honda. You’re not livin’ large?
RD: I’m doing alright. My Honda is still running great. My wife’s new car has been in the shop already in its first year.
AF: OK she’s roughing it. How about your private life? You are a legitimate star in Chicago. And since I live in Illinois now, I know you must get swamped with autograph hounds. How are you handling it?
RD: It’s kind of funny really. At first we could go to dinner without much fuss. Now, people recognize me and come up all the time. But, the team tells us this stuff is going to happen. As you know, I like the fans very much. Without them we’re all playing football in a park somewhere.
AF: Is that why you jumped into the stands after the Seahawks game?
RD: These are great fans in Chicago. They care win, lose or draw. I just wanted to share the win with them. They have supported me since day one.
AF: They’re a bit different when you guys lose?
RD: (Laughing) It’s their team too.
AF: Better to be Rashied Davis then Rex Grossman?
RD: We went 13-3 with Rex as our quarterback. He has led us to the Super Bowl. Obviously that says a lot.
AF: Well said. How is it that you are so popular with the Chicago press? You were highlighted often in photo and print.
RD: Just lucky I guess. It’s part of the game. It’s nice when things go well.
AF: Any memories of the AFL you would like to share with fans reading along? What do you feel about the new changes?
RD: I remember so many people and games that it would take awhile to name them all. The AFL is a great league. I liked the rivalry between the SaberCats and the Rattlers. Also, playing the Avengers was intense as well.
AF: And what about the changes to the league?
RD: Let’s talk in later on that. But overall, I would have to say it will be good for the overall future of the AFL.
AF: Is the AFL respected by the NFL players?
RD: Yes. The league is more legitimate now then ever. Guys have asked me about the league many times. Notice now how many young players are seeking roster spots on AFL teams.
AF: OK, I’ll leave more for later. Good luck, I’m sure that everyone in the AFL will be looking forward to your thoughts in a few weeks.
RD: Thanks to everyone in the AFL.
Tim Ball is a writer in the Chicagoland area. Married and father of three, his opinions on Arena Football reflects the positive aspect of the game as a family event second to none in pro sports.
