Jake Delhomme was off to the best start of his career. He had thrown for eight touchdowns in two-plus games for the Carolina Panthers.
Then he heard the pop. Delhomme's injured elbow needed surgery, and he missed the rest of the 2007 season.
As the Panthers slumped to 7-9, three replacement quarterbacks – Vinny Testaverde, David Carr and Matt Moore – couldn't match Delhomme's numbers. They threw more interceptions (17) than touchdowns (11) the remainder of the season.
But it was more than numbers. Those three couldn't replace the Intangible Jake, either.
Gone was Delhomme's fiery competitiveness, willful style, and joy for the game.
Today, Delhomme returns as the Panthers open their season in San Diego against the Chargers (4:15 p.m., Fox, WCCB, Ch. 18). He says his elbow is pain free, and it's clear the joy is back. So are the intangible qualities – leadership, competitiveness, preparation, enthusiasm – that make his return so key.
“Jake has all these natural attributes as a leader,” said Panthers center Ryan Kalil. “But we really missed his energy and his fire. This game becomes a job. He makes football seem like it was when you were a kid, when it was all about having fun.”
Leadership
Few things are as important for a quarterback as the ability to help teammates find the comfort level where they perform their best. Even with his right arm in a sling, Delhomme tried to do that last season.
“When Jake was hurt, he stayed around here,” Kalil said. “Most guys, when they get hurt, they kind of go under the radar. They're not a part of the team until they get better.
“But Jake was in (the locker room). He was into the game, even though he wasn't playing. He was talking to you, helping you out. He didn't do that because he had to.”
The situation challenged Delhomme.
“That was very awkward for me, very different,” he said. “I wasn't going through the physical grind, week-in and week-out, that they were. But you want to be there for them.”
Now, with Delhomme on the field, he's helping teammates, particularly the younger ones, find their place.
“I want to be that guy,” Delhomme said. “I want to help guys get in the right places and give them a chance to go in the right direction. That's something I can offer them, especially to the younger guys.”
“He makes me feel like he trusts me out there,” rookie offensive tackle Jeff Otah said. “I know if I mess up, he'll let me know about it – but it'll be OK. He tells me I'll do it right next time. That's a good feeling for a rookie, to know that a quarterback like Jake trusts me to protect him.”
Competitiveness
Delhomme's competitive roots come from his hometown of Breaux Bridge, La., where he spent much of his childhood tagging along with his older brother Jeff and cousin Casey Delhomme. Jeff and Casey were excellent athletes, and it was all Jake could do to keep up.
“He always wanted to compete,” said Jack Delhomme, Jake's uncle and the mayor of Breaux Bridge. “Didn't matter if it was marbles or playing football.”
Or, apparently, table tennis.
“Last spring, Jake was down here rehabbing his elbow and he got in a Ping-Pong match with his (teen-aged) nephew Will,” Jack Delhomme said. “Will kept beating Jake and Jake didn't like it.
“Jake kept hitting the ball harder and harder. He wanted to keep playing until he'd win. I told Will, ‘You'd better let him beat you or you'll be here all day.'”
Jake Delhomme, barely concealing a smile, has a different version of that story.
“That's a lie,” he said. “He can't beat me. He can't. They're making that up. I'm so much mentally stronger than anybody back home. I'll whip him.
“I might have to play him left-handed.”
Preparation
Receiver Muhsin Muhammad hasn't played with Delhomme since 2004, when Muhammad signed with the Chicago Bears. Muhammad's back, and he sees a Delhomme with an even better grasp on what it takes to succeed.
“He's a better practice player now,” Muhammad said. “(Back then) we'd go out on Sundays, and we had some real magical stuff. But during the week, it wasn't a polished thing. Now, he's more consistent, and that comes from what he's doing during the week.
“He understands more what it takes.”
Watching last season helped Delhomme with that.
“I didn't have the stress last year of game-planning and preparing every week,” he said. “But I saw a little differently what goes into getting ready. I was able to pick up on a lot of things on how important that time in practice is.”
Enthusiasm
In the Panthers' 47-3 preseason victory against Washington in August, Otah flinched at the line of scrimmage when a Redskins defensive lineman jumped into the neutral zone and nudged him.
It appeared Otah would be called for a false start.
Delhomme, not believing it, jumped up and down in disbelief in front of the referee, the kind of old-fashioned tantrum he might have pulled as a kid back in Breaux Bridge.
But when the call went against the Redskins, Delhomme turned and calmly walked back to the huddle.
“Jake went all crazy,” fullback Brad Hoover said. “Sometimes when there's something's that's not that serious, he can blow things a little out of proportion.”
Delhomme says it's all part of having fun and getting back to the kid inside, something he and the team missed a season ago.
“We notice that kind of thing,” Kalil said. “He's looking out for his guys. That's just Jake being Jake.”
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