Boomer Esiason

Norman Julius "Boomer" Esiason (born April 17, 1961 in West Islip, New York) is a former American football quarterback and current television and radio sportscaster.

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After his college days at Maryland, he joined the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League as the second-round NFL Draft pick. Earning a Pro Bowl pick in 1986, the Bengals' left-handed quarterback was part of the NFL's most potent offense. Two years later in 1988 he led the league with a 97.4 passer rating, won the NFL's MVP award, and traveled to a Super Bowl, losing to the San Francisco 49ers and Joe Montana in a hard fought 20-16 loss that the 49ers ended with a famous 92 yard drive for the winning touchdown pass from Montana to wide reciever John Taylor with less than 30 seconds left in the game.

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After being traded to the New York Jets in 1993, Esiason earned a fourth Pro Bowl appearance and in three seasons climbed to fourth on the club's all-time career passing yardage list. He played a year with the Arizona Cardinals but returned to Cincinnati to end his career. His last play, as a professional football player as the Cincinnati quarterback, was a 77-yard pass to Darnay Scott after a play-action run, which is often considered his trademark skill of being exceptionally deceptive in the fake.In his 14 NFL seasons, Esiason completed 2969 passes for 37,920 yards and 247 touchdowns. He also recorded 447 carries for 1,598 rushing yards and 7 touchdowns. He finished within the NFL's top 10 stat leaders in passing yards and passing touchdowns 7 times.

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Following his retirement as a player, Esiason went into broadcasting. He was a color commentator for ABC's Monday Night Football telecasts from 1998 to 2000. Following his dismissal by ABC (mainly due to personal conflicts between him and play-by-play man Al Michaels), Esiason was hired by Westwood One to become the analyst for radio broadcasts of Monday Night Football games. Esiason also currently serves as a studio commentator for The NFL Today on CBS Sports and as the host of "The Boomer Esiason Show" on the Madison Square Garden Network.

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He is also well-known as an advocate for cystic fibrosis charities; his son Gunnar suffers from the disease.

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Facts about Esiason:

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• In 1988 he was voted league MVP and led the Bengals to Super Bowl XXIII
• His last professional play, for the Bengals, was a 77-yard touchdown off a play-action received by Darnay Scott.
• His volunteer work earned him the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award in 1995.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/EsiaBo00.htm

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1961: 1961 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar)....

West Islip, New York: West Islip is a census-designated place (CDP) located in the town of Islip, Suffolk County, New York. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 28,907....

Television: : See also Television (band) for the rock band...

Boomer Esiason related Images and Photos (experimental)

Gears of War Boomer Bronze Statue Sculpture

Gears of War Boomer Platinum Statue Sculpture

Battlestar Galactica Boomer and Athena Action Figure 2-Pack