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There were probably a few games I played where I should not have played, because of some nagging injuries or something. I used to always talk the managers into playing me, because I wanted to play so badly.

I tried the broadcasting thing, the coaching thing, but I'll never replace the competitive feeling of being out on the field when we were players.

There were a lot of players who worked just as hard as I did, and if you didn't, you didn't stay in the big leagues.

I was also lucky to play for an owner, Bud Selig, who truly cared about his players. He'd call me into his office once in a while when he knew things weren't going so well. And it's funny. Every time I left there I always felt like something good was about to happen.

When I started playing, there were no teams and no structure, so I had to play with the boys. I get very emotional when I think about the humiliation that I've suffered playing football.

I was on the field praising quarterback Dan Fouts during a ceremony to retire his number. Boos began shaking the stadium. It was a moment of misery like I'd never experienced before. Afterward, dejection hung over me for days.

I was not a very good football player. My coach hated me - I don't know why, I guess it's probably because I wasn't very talented.

I really believe God called on me to coach, and that is the reason I stayed in it for so long.

I wound up through a wild set of circumstances getting into coaching. I went in and volunteered with Don Coryell, who was a big part of my past, great coach. A lot of people say he was one of the greatest coaches ever. He was very good in high school, college and pro. Another guy on that staff was named John Madden.