As the lockout dragged along last summer, Redskins quarterback John Beck emerged as a curiously entertaining figure.
Back when Donovan McNabb was on the outs, Rex Grossman was a free agent and the Redskins had just completed a draft without selecting a quarterback, it seemed -- almost by default -- to be Beck's time.
Beck, 30, was outwardly confident, and he attempted to make the most of his opportunity by organizing team workouts and calling past and present NFL QBs who didn't get their chance to play until later in their careers.
It was all shaping up as a fine story of perseverance ... that is, until Grossman re-signed and coach Mike Shanahan named him starter on the eve of the season opener. Beck did eventually crack the lineup, but he found himself back on the bench after subpar play in three consecutive Redskins losses.
If you think Beck's small window has closed, you're probably right. But don't tell him that.
"Last season didn’t go any way I would have liked it to go,” he recently told KZNS-FM in Utah (via The Washington Post). "I mean, I was happy when I got a chance to play, I was happy with how I played the first couple games, but we were in a tough spot as a team.
“But I’m pretty excited about this upcoming year, because this last year there were a lot of things going into it we knew was going to make it difficult," he went on. "And this year I got to get some more experience, and now, going into this year, I really feel a lot more comfortable.”
Beck is still talking about those conversations with other signal-callers.
“I’ve talked to a lot of guys that are considered Hall of Fame guys that had great careers,” Beck said. “And they’ll tell you, listen, nobody’s path is just all roses. Everybody has to fight through something."
Of course, in Beck's case, that something might be a seriously limited skill-set. But good luck to the man nonetheless.