Kicker has eye on sky and well-grounded feet
 

the broncos interviews - jason elam
Kicker has eye on sky and well-grounded feet
By Mike Klis
Denver Post Staff Writer

http://extras.mnginteractive.com/liv...00106a_200.jpg


"My first-ever game at home, they always have the Game Day Magazine sitting in the lockers. I was looking through the magazine and as all players do, I came across the cheerleaders section. I instantly saw her and she was beautiful." - Elam, on discovering his future wife, Tamy, a former Broncos cheerleader (Post / Glenn Asakawa)

Editor's note: Throughout this season, Broncos reporter Mike Klis and photographer Glenn Asakawa will help readers get to know one of the team's players on a deeper level. Asakawa's photographs will complement a weekly conversation with Klis about life, about work and about play.

This week features kicker Jason Elam, whose 14 seasons make him the Broncos' longest-tenured player. Born in Florida, raised in Georgia, Elam graduated from the University of Hawaii before the Broncos made him their third-round pick in the 1993 draft. He and his wife, Tamy, have four children - Jason Jr., 8; daughter Jordan, 7; Julianna, 4; and Joshua, 2.

Klis: There is no better gossip-page fodder than a Broncos player hooking up with a Broncos cheerleader. We know you first laid eyes on Tamy in the Game Day Magazine prior to the 1993 home opener. But I understand it would be an understatement to say she was hard to get.

Elam: I ended up calling her, and she had a boyfriend. So I let it go. And two years later, we played San Francisco in the Japan Bowl in Tokyo. And I saw her again and I thought we had a little connection going, so I sent some flowers up to her room from a Japanese florist who didn't speak a lick of English. I wrote this little note to her. She had to read it on the bus over the PA. And they were making fun of her. And so during the game I'm trying to get her attention. I think it was Mike's first game as head coach.

Klis: Wait a minute. Shanahan's first game as head coach and his kicker's got his head over with the cheerleaders?

Elam: I couldn't get her attention. But then after the game, they're all huddled at the gate and I walked up in the middle of all of them, knowing it was going to be embarrassing, but I do it anyway. I ask her if she got all the flowers and all her friends were listening, giggling. Anyway, Tamy and her boyfriend were about at the point where they were going to call it off, so finally my timing was good. We ended up getting engaged about five months later and married during the offseason.

Klis: As stories
BRONCOS WALLPAPER

Save this Denver Post portrait to your monitor screen. Click the image above. Right-click your mouse over the new, larger image. Select "Set as Background." Voila!




go, that's a keeper. Tell me about flying airplanes.

Elam: When I was born in Florida, we lived right at A1 Air Force Base, so a lot of my parents' friends were in the Air Force, they flew a lot. So I remembered having boosters and stuff all over my room, airplanes.

Klis: A typical boy who loved airplanes. The dream usually dies there, though.

Elam: I graduated from college in December of '92 and I did a Pepsi commercial on the Islands. I got a little bit of money for it and the draft wasn't until April, so I wasn't doing anything other than working out and kicking. I had a couple buddies who were taking lessons at the local airport so I used my commercial money to take a few lessons. And I just loved it and kept getting my ratings.

Klis: I read where you want to become a commercial pilot when you're done with football?

Elam: When I first started playing with the Broncos I wanted to, but now it's just more of a hobby. I've got four kids and I don't want to be away from them.

Klis: Christianity




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advertisement


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------




is at the center of your life.
Elam: I grew up in a very Christian home in the Bible Belt. When I went off to college, I went to a melting pot of people, and I started questioning, "Why do I believe in what I believe?" Is it just because I'm from the South? I've got friends from India, I've got friends from Pakistan. If I was born in a different place, I'd be a Hindu or a Buddhist or a Muslim. So I had to start from scratch, essentially, and it was quite a process.

Klis: How did you ultimately resolve your inner conflicts?

Elam: I don't think God wanted us to have blind faith. He gave us so much evidence, archeological evidence, historical evidence, that we can note almost with certainty. It takes way more faith to believe in evolution than it does Christianity. You've got this Goo Man they want you to think we came from. It doesn't make sense to me.

Klis: Kicking might be the most specialized skill in football. Think about it: Everyone has thrown a football. Everyone has tried to catch a football. Everyone

Jason Elam wears his faith - Christianity - on his shirt. The "crosseyed" shirt references Hebrews 12:2, which encourages the faithful to keep their eyes on Jesus, who died on a cross. (Post / Glenn Asakawa)

has tackled, blocked. But there's usually only one kid in town who can kick.

Elam: I grew up playing soccer and I could always kick it a long, long way. I never knew where it was going. I remember I was in ninth grade and I went to a varsity football game for our high school. And our kicker was struggling and I remember thinking, "I can do that." So that next year I went out for the team.

Klis: You mean you had never played football until your sophomore year in high school?

Elam: Never. Didn't even know how to put my pads on.

Klis: How long do you envision kicking, as long as you can make them?

Elam: I'm looking (Monday) night at John Carney and he's 42 and Morten Anderson's 46. I'm 36, so I feel like I can at least play until I'm 40. Not having to worry about kickoffs is huge. And I feel like my swing is good.

The Elam file
* Kicker

* 5-feet-11, 200 pounds

* Drafted 70th overall out of Hawaii in 1993.

* Holds Broncos records for career field goals (346), field-goal attempts (436), field-goal percentage (79.3) as well as extra points made (537) and attempted (540).

* Enters 2006 ranked 10th in NFL history in career field goals.

Staff writer Mike Klis can be reached at 303-954-1055 or mklis@denverpost.com.


http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_4415454

Thanks for the article! Great read! :thumbs:

I liked this part.

Klis: How long do you envision kicking, as long as you can make them?

Elam: I'm looking (Monday) night at John Carney and he's 42 and Morten Anderson's 46. I'm 36, so I feel like I can at least play until I'm 40. Not having to worry about kickoffs is huge. And I feel like my swing is good.

Hopefully, Elam will stick around for at least another 5-6 years.

Elam and Rod have been here forever. They are career Broncos that really define the team. It is hard to imagine the Broncos without these players.

Elam:<i> I don't think God wanted us to have blind faith. He gave us so much evidence, archeological evidence, historical evidence, that we can note almost with certainty. It takes way more faith to believe in evolution than it does Christianity. You've got this Goo Man they want you to think we came from. It doesn't make sense to me.</i>

Ok, so Jason Elam is officially a moron. Oh well, I still got love for you buddy!!!

LOL.... you have no clue! He's far from a moron! He knows what he believes and why he believes it, unlike most who have faith without any knowledge!

TO quote Dane Cook:

"okay, so what happens when you die?"

what an ass...

Elam: I don't think God wanted us to have blind faith.

he chose his path, you chose yours

okay back on subject:

Does Elam make the hall when he retires?

great article.

Elam is awesome, I hope he continues to play for 4 more years or so.

I'm not going to get into a theological pissing match, but I subscribe to the theory of the Grand Architect.

There are so many things that have to be PERFECT to allow the diversity of life. Water doesn't sustain life if frozen or gasious. The moon is in perfect alignment and gives us the tides that are essential for life. We are the perfect distance from the sun that is the perfect size. A climate change of even 5 degrees would wreak complete havok on the planet. That's how much of a pinhead we dance on.

Even the slight tilt off axis makes the seasons possible as Earth makes it's yearly orbit. The atmosphere blocks would normally would be deadly gamma rays. There are species that have absolutely no history of evolution. We could just be someone's aquaium or God's little experiment. All I know is that billions of things had to align perfectly for things to be so perfect.

One finally comment before I refuse to comment further because it's just not a topic quite appropriate, but animals like cats and dogs don't really have near the self awareness. The only "concience" they have is that if they poop in the bed they will be punished. There is no sense of guilt actually, it's just a sense of punishment...they understand they can't do certain things, but don't really know why IMO.

It's the typical agnostic/atheist mantra that a man of faith is a moron. How do you know he doesn't like the scientific method dimwit? I've chased off Bible Thumpers off this board several times, but I'm no Bible thumper. I could tell that Freak was an arrogant freak from point zero.

WTF is he even posting here with that dominant San Diego team? Oh yeah...they couldn't sell out after a 2-0 start.

Rep - On the money Militia. To each his own when it comes to their beliefs.

I hope we keep Ernster because he can kick FG's too. As loing as Elam can hit from 45 on in with accuracy he's a huge asset.

Didn't mean to hijack this thread, but I just have to reply to this.

So in other words, you don't believe in evolution. You believe evolution is a myth and the Grand Architect is the truth.

Exactly. That's why, even though there are billions of stars in our galaxy, life exists around only one of those stars. An insignificant star in an outer arm of the galaxy.

Hell, there are a trillion stars in the universe and we know of life in just one of them. Look up Drake's equation.

If indeed there was a Grand Architect, I wish he wouldn't have chosen a star like the sun, which is going to burn up all it's fuel in the next 5 billion years.

All the points you state in fact reinforce the arguement against the Grand Architect.

And if in fact you believe evolution is a myth, then you must reject most of modern science, all of modern biology, most of medicine, and large amounts of technology that are used to produce the food you eat every day.

And getting back to point, I really admire Elam and think that he along with Rod Smith have become so integral to the Broncos. I wish he continues for atleast 2 more season. His experience is invaluable to us. I will feel very sad the day he retires, because the Broncos will lose a large chunk of their soul with him.

Go Broncos! Kill the Ravens!

Drake's equation assumes that the theory of evolutionary life formation is valid. Without this assumption, the equation is meaningless. Since Mock's argument is questioning the validity of the theory of evolution, using Drake's formula does not support your argument for evolution. This is basically a fallacy of circular reasoning.

Since any theory of origins cannot be proven scientifically or logically, any belief on the subject (creation or evolution) is equally valid (or invalid, depending on your perspective).

Wrong dimwit. I never said Evolution was a myth whatsoever. Everything is just happenstance, right?

I know perfectly well there may be other planets able to sustain life. That wan't the point.

This is the most absurd and moronic comment of all. We just need God to screw in a flourcent bulb next time. Then we can just replace the sun every few billion years.

Where did I say evolution was a myth? I never said that whatsoever dimwit. I basically said their are things evolution theory cannot explain, including the remarkable balance of climate on earth.

Did I say there were not trillions of stars? How many are as stable as our sun...how many planets have perfectly balanced climate and is tilted to give us the seasons? You don't know crap.

I never said there couldn't be other planets perfectly alligned in the galaexy or uninverse. That was your assertion, not mine.

Let me ask you this...

Do animals need to have a moral compass? Athos many Human Primates act like animals, it doesn't mean they have no sense of free will.

A cat chases a mouse because it is amusing and tasty if he's hungry. A Tiger kills a Gazelle. You think hey have the remorse to kill themselves after the act? You don't know crap. Does a dog feel bad after biting off the tail of a cat? NO! He is defending his turf.

If a poind is short on little crappies, do you think the bass is capable of making a moral decision on their ultimate survival in the pond? He's simply going to act on instinct.

Did man walk with Dinosaurs? I'd LOVE to debate ANYONE that takes the bible literally on National T.V. and shred them to pieces. Jason sounds like he does. He quotes archeological evidence as proof that the bible is true and factual.

That is called pure IGNORANCE because it does PRECISELY the opposite. I'm sorry, Jason Elam is a ignorant person. I call people who have had to opportunity to learn about both sides, and say a book of myths written by man as factual history, morons. Especially since the book has been re-written, and re-written, and re-written. You can't re-write history and change it to suit your needs???

<I>TO quote Dane Cook:

"okay, so what happens when you die?"</i>

Your heart stops beating, and you're brain turns off. Then, you rot.

Evolution is a fact. We have witnessed it as fishes have evolved into new species in the last 65 years. You can look at the fossil record for about million skeletons showing the changes over time. Maybe Elam thinks that God put all the continents on the planet just the way they are, and the fact they all match up nicely if you reverse the continental drift is just a coincidence. And the ice cores in Greenland that show that there never was a global flood, let along a chance in fkin hell a Koala migrated from the middle east accross oceans to Australia.

In fact, Australia is the best evidence for evolution on the planet outside these one things that wake me up in the morning...they fly, and chirp really loud.

Jason Elam can believe whatever he wants so long as he makes those FGs though. But in my book, he's a moron and living a lie, even worse, he is spreading that virus to his innocent kids.

I'd like to ask Jason what the moral of the story was at Sodom and Gamora (sp). lmao. Read that crazy story. Guy is saved by Angels who warn him to flee the city, as the citizens want to rape the two male angels (sodomy), and so he leaves the city, then his daughters seduce him with wine, and he sleeps with both of them.

End of story. WTF???

Don't worry rapture will happen in the next few years and it won't matter.

Gosh Freak, I would of never guessed you were a domocrat

If Elam is right, and every scientist in the world is wrong, then I am still right because Cheney is Satan, GW is the anti-christ, etc...

While we're on the topic of crazy Christian athletes: why do they all name their kids with the same damn initials? cf. Roger Clemens, John Elway, etc.