Steve McNair was sort of like Frank Sinatra: He did things "His Way". In high school in Mississippi, he was named an All-American by SuperPrep Magazine. Being right in the heart of SEC country, McNair could have easily gone to a high-profile Top-20 program, but he decided to go to Alcorn State.

In 1995, McNair helped put Alcorn State and Division 1-AA on the national stage as ESPN started to broadcast games in which he was playing. Big reason behind this was McNair was in the process of setting records for career passing yards (14,496) and total career yards (16,283) records which he still holds today.

McNair's college numbers were gaudy enough to get him drafted No. 3 overall in the 1996 Draft by the Titans. In 1999, he was part of the "Music City Miracle" game, and this same team, was 1 yard away from taking Super Bowl XXXIV to overtime. Getting to the Super Bowl is an accomplishment that 90 percent of NFL quarterbacks never reach, and McNair had already reached this moment in only his fourth season.

I think McNair's finest moment as a player came in 2002. He had his taste of the Super Bowl and did everything, and I mean everything in his power to be in the trenches for his team. His team started out 1-4 and looked like a long shot just to make the playoffs. McNair was nursing multiple injuries (strained ribs, turf toe, and back pain), and was in so much pain he didn’t practice at all in December. But he laced 'em up, got on the field on game day, and led the Titans to close their regular season out with a 5-0 record before eventually losing to Oakland in the AFC Championship Game.

Usually, I like to be more opinionated and give out less statistical information in the pieces I write. I mean after all, anyone can google to find out stats on anyone. But I felt that the way McNair was such a fierce and loyal competitor on the field that he deserved some recognition of the positive impact he really had on the game.