Q: In your Hall of Fame acceptance speech, you seemed to purposefully avoid talking a lot about race, and the troubles you faced in your career. Why?
A: I didn’t want that to override the accomplishment. Even when I played, I didn’t want it to be at the forefront of my career. It was there and I dealt with it. I wasn’t going to be on a soapbox crying about it.
Q: What did you think about Michael Vick’s suspension and dog-fighting charges?
A: I thought it was harsh. I don’t think the penalty fit the crime. But there’s a huge compassion for animals, more than human beings sometimes.
Q: A lot of people have argued that a white quarterback wouldn’t have been treated the same way.
A: Again, that shows even though we’ve come a long way in race relations there’s still a lot of that out there.
Q: Looking back at your career, one of the big low points was the 1993 playoff collapse against Buffalo that’s known simply as “the comeback.” What happened?
A: We got off to a great start, but once we got into halftime we just had a natural let-up. I’ve never seen a game with momentum change like that. It’s one of those games you want back because I feel that team was good enough to go to the Super Bowl.
Q: The fact that you didn’t get to the Super Bowl has to be a big regret.
A: That’s the biggest regret of my career. But I accomplished so many other things that I never thought I’d accomplish, so there’s a lot of bittersweet that came along with my career in the NFL.
Q: Would you trade your five Grey Cups for a shot at the Super Bowl?
A: No. Those were unbelievable experiences for me, things that really boosted my confidence. And I don’t think you’ll ever see a team win five straight championships at the pro level in any sport. I think we’ll be the last ones to do it. That’s a very special part of my life.
