SAN DIEGO – DECEMBER 24: Ryan Leaf
Ryan Leaf reminded fans of a terrible performance he once had when it was brought up Sunday during the Broncos game.
The Denver Broncos stood no chance Sunday against the New Orleans Saints. Practice squad receiver Kendall Hinton lined up at quarterback and ended the game with one single completion and two interceptions.
Such a final outcome is incredibly rare and the broadcast mentioned the last time it happened. However, the graphic left out the fact it was Ryan Leaf who made the infamous history. He stepped up to take accountability for his all-time terrible game back in 1998.
Ryan Leaf brings up some sad history
The volatile career of Ryan Leaf has been well-documented and it appears he has turned his life around in recent years. The former No. 2 overall pick by the San Diego Chargers in 1998 was thrown on the field right away and the results were not great.
Even with his struggles the Chargers managed to start 2-0. Then came a Week 3 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. Leaf went 1/15 in the game and threw two interceptions. That was the beginning of the end as he threw four interceptions the following week and things only got worse for him personally.
However, Leaf did point out he at least completed the first pass he threw in that fateful 1998 game. All his stat lines from that season are brutal and even when he set a high-mark of 281 yards he did so with 25 completions on 52 attempts. Leaf managed a final total of two touchdowns and 15 interceptions in that rookie season.
The circumstance with Hinton and the Broncos are obviously much different so imagine what would happen today if a top rookie quarterback had such a game. Twitter would melt down within minutes.
Leaf has had his struggles and it is good to see him living life with a sense of humor now.