Can there be a redemption of Jake Delhomme?

It's no secret that I am biased and that I desperately want the answer to be yes.  Why?  Because Jake is a great tv quarter back.  He's passionate and exaggerated without seeming entitled and sissy like a certain New England player with his own rule book.  He's also fun to watch when he can connect with his receivers and when he goes bad...you can't look away.  It's like onlooker delay at the worst accident in uptown's history.  If all this ultimately fails to stimulate, there is always the bar bet on whether this is the day Jake will finally bite off that dangling bit of tongue.

Charm and character aside, there are reasons his career may be over.  Over the last eight seasons he has an average quarterback rating of roughly 88 (not bad, but not spectacular) and he's thrown 94 interceptions to 123 touchdowns.  That may not seem dreadful, but with John Fox coaching he may not have thrown the ball more than 225 times in eight seasons.  He's thirty-five years old and we have absolutely no idea whether his surgery caused last season's meltdown.  Carolina has a good quarterback in Matt Moore who would probably produce the same stats over an eight year period and who needs the experience.

For now I will keep my Number 17 jersey on its hanger and hope that a little bit of pixie dust is all Jake needs to bounce back from a disastrous year and give us one last go round where being a Cardiac Cat is a good thing.