Mike Bartrum Hangs It Up After 13 Seasons
Eagles Pro Bowler Mike Bartrum hung it up today. He will likely be remembered best for his two touchdowns in the NFC Championship game against the Falcons on Sunday, January 23rd, 2005.
Bartrum was a bruiser. Philly always likes a hard worker who is great at what he does even though it might not be the flashiest thing in the world. All he did was catch touchdowns.
"I can't say enough to show how much I appreciate being able to play in the NFL for so many years," Bartrum said in a statement. "Retiring as a Philadelphia Eagle is something that is very special for me. The memories I have shared with the players, coaches and Eagles organization are some of the best memories of my life."
In honor of the long snapper, we bring you this clip of Bartrum snapping balls in places you wouldn't imagine. There is some John Clark in this footage. Deal with it. Fair thee well, Mike.
Holy shit! That was impressive, especially the FedEx box.
Posted by: Walklett | Tuesday, June 19, 2007 at 05:55 PM
Some crafty editing, I'm sure. But an impressive feat none the less.
Posted by: enrico | Tuesday, June 19, 2007 at 05:59 PM
I have always liked Mike Bartrum. I am convinced that Bartrum to Detmer to Akers is one of the best trios to ever grace the kicking world. They were just about as sure a thing as it gets. My most favorite fact about Mike Bartrum in terms of long snapping is simply the fact when he snapped it, the laces were always out...everytime.
Mike Bartrum, you will be missed on this team.
Posted by: GreggyD | Tuesday, June 19, 2007 at 06:21 PM
Chad Lewis caught the 2 TDs in the NFC Championship against Atlanta. I might be wrong, but I think Bartrum was the first "excessive TD celebration" penalty given out, in the game against the Lions in the 2004 Super Bowl season, for long snapping the ball back to McNabb out of the endzone. Either way, one of my favorite underdog players is gone the way of Todd Pratt, Donald Brashear, Hank "Honeybuns" Fraley, and Sal "Moustache Ride" Fasano.
Posted by: Phil | Tuesday, June 19, 2007 at 07:21 PM
Having been a long and short-snapper in both high school and college, I can attest that the accuracy part of it is not the "hard" per se...any snapper worth his salt could put it in the Fedex box from that distance. The truly hard parts of it that separates these guys pros are:
* getting the rotation down consistently (e.g. "laces out every time"
* doing it on a rope (no rainbow arcs)
* doing it with a 250 pound linebacker in your face trying to run you over in front of 80,000 screaming fans
* on punts, being able to run downfield and make a tackle after snapping it
Posted by: J | Tuesday, June 19, 2007 at 08:30 PM
Oh, that ******* John Clark. God...I hate him. Er...I mean.....ummm....ugh, John Clark.
Posted by: Andy | Tuesday, June 19, 2007 at 10:15 PM