The Kurt Warner story

Mitch Albom, Detroit Free Press - ATLANTA - "Come on, already. Don't you do anything wrong?"

This question, which might be unique in the history of Super Bowls, was actually yelled at Kurt Warner, the St. Louis Rams quarterback, this week.

Taken out of context, "Don't you do anything wrong?" might sound harsh. But considering the previous 30 minutes with Warner, in which he talked about, in no particular order, God, family, staying healthy, surviving three years in arena football, God, getting cut by the Packers, working in a supermarket to make ends meet, God, faith, moving to Amsterdam to play in the World Football League, courting his wife, adopting her children - including a son who was blind and brain-damaged from being accidentally dropped on his head as an infant - God, making the Rams, getting the starting job in late August when Trent Green got hurt, God, opportunity, success, earning the highest quarterback rating in the NFL this year while making the league's minimum salary, God, winning the MVP award, doing charity work, being satisfied with who he is, hoping his team wins Sunday, through the grace of, who else, God, whom Warner is really here to serve - well, you can understand the question:

"Don't you do anything wrong?"

Warner simply smiled and shrugged.

"Sure," he said. "Lots of things."

I have the ending for Kurt Warner, the storybook ending to his storybook season. It involves winning the Super Bowl, yes, but that is not the ending. It involves throwing the winning pass and being carried off on his teammates' shoulders, yes, but that is not the ending, either. It involves a trophy, a fist in the air, the tears of his wife, the champagne in his hair. All that, too. But that is not the ending.

The ending goes like this: He wins the Big Game - and disappears forever. How can any year top it?