Trent Green

PRO FOOTBALL PLAYER

“Trent, I love you and I always will.”
—Dick Vermeil upon retirement

Trent Green has accomplished the ultimate dream for many Missouri athletes. He has played for both the St. Louis Rams and the Kansas City Chiefs, which made him a star on both sides of the state. Injuries cut short his playing time in St. Louis, but the star quarterback came into his own in Arrowhead Stadium.

The Early Years

Trent Green was born on July 9, 1970, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. But he spent much of his childhood in the St. Louis area. He attended Vianney High School in Kirkwood where he was an outstanding athlete in both football and basketball.

Green averaged 20 points per game for his high school basketball team and won numerous accolades.  He earned all-conference and all-district honors for three straight years in hoops. He was a great basketball player, but football was his real passion and his ticket to college sports.

Rise To Fame

Green attended college at the University of Indiana, where he was one of the most prolific passers in the history of college football. When he graduated, he was near the top of practically every passing category in the Hoosier record books. Green completed his studies at Indiana in 1993, but put his career while pursuing a job in professional football. The star athlete was picked by the San Diego Chargers in the eighth round of the draft as the 222 overall pick.

Show Me Success

Trent Green’s road to success in pro football got off to a rough start. He was abruptly cut by the Chargers, then cut by the British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League soon thereafter. Over the next three years, he played for the Washington Redskins, but saw very little playing time.  He finally got his chance to shine in 1998 when he was named the starting quarterback and led the team to a 6–8 record.

In 1999, Green returned to his hometown when he joined the St. Louis Rams. His job as a starter didn’t last long after an injury in a preseason game. Even though he was on the bench, he got a Super Bowl ring as the Rams won the championship. He started five games the next year, and played a significant role in propelling the Rams into the playoffs.

In 2000, Green was traded to the Chiefs, where he finally had the breakout year he had always dreamed about. Two years after arriving in Kansas City, Green was named to the Pro Bowl, which established him as one of the great quarterbacks in NFL history.

After five years in Kansas City, he was traded to the Miami Dolphins.  Green ultimately finished his career back with the Rams in 2008, where he started a few games in place of injured quarterback, Marc Bulger.

He officially announced his retirement in 2009 and made the transition to the broadcast booth, where he can still be heard doing color commentary for NFL games.

EXTRA, EXTRA!

• Green appeared on Wheel of Fortune’s NFL Week in 2003 and won over $30,000 for his foundation.
• He was named one of the “Top 100 Good Guys” in sports by The Sporting News in 2003.