Raised in the Orange County city of Huntington Beach and having gone to their first game in Anaheim Stadium after moving from the L.A. Memorial Coliseum as a 10-year-old in 1980, Jamie Martin was destined to be a Ram.
Not once. Not twice. But three times.
A two-time Division I-AA All-America and two-time Big Sky Conference MVP quarterback at Weber State, Martin passed for 12,287 yards and 87 touchdowns during his collegiate career.
But when he wasn't selected during the 1993 NFL Draft, it gave him the opportunity to sign with the hometown Rams.
"I was lucky enough to have them be one of the teams that wanted to bring me in as a free agent and so it was like a dream come true," Martin said. "When you're not drafted, you get a chance to kind of pick a team – you have options. And it was a good roster, quarterback-wise, for me to come in and be able to compete.
"They had a veteran in Jim Everett, and then an older veteran, Mike Pagel, he was kind of at the end of his career, and they had a young quarterback, T.J. Rubley. It just looked like things fell my way. If I went and competed and did a good job, I would have a chance to make that roster."
Even with that stable of QBs, head coach Chuck Knox offered the rookie suggestions on what he should do to stick around.
"The same thing any coach expects, to come in and learn the offense, do a good job, show you're capable, and that they can trust you. And then you go from there," Martin said. "Ted Tollner was our quarterback coach. Mike Martz, that was his first year after coming from Arizona State. He worked with the tight ends. And Ernie Zampese was the offensive coordinator. So I was lucky to be around some good offensive guys and started learning."
Besides his coaches, Martin was able to learn about the game – on and off the field – from his teammates.
"The guys were generally really good to me. Jim Everett was good to me as the starter," Martin said. "But it was an awkward quarterback room that season – because I can't remember when – Jim Everett was actually benched for the second-year guy, T.J. Rubley. So I got to learn a lot about staying professional and dealing with some awkward stuff."
Stuff around the Rams was definitely different three years later in 1996. They were in their second season in St. Louis, and while Martin had made the move from L.A., Everett was with New Orleans and Rubley would spend time on Denver and Philadelphia's practice squads.
They drafted Michigan State's Tony Banks in the second round, and eight-year veteran Steve Walsh was signed as a free agent.
And Martin saw his first NFL action that season. After appearing in four games, he'd throw his first touchdown pass – a 19-yard completion to Eddie Kennison – during a Week 15 December afternoon game in Chicago with an 18-degree wind chill.
"Oh, that's one moment I'll never forget. It was pretty awesome," Martin said. "I was the backup to Tony Banks and it was freezing. It was the fourth quarter, and he actually threw a punch and got ejected from the game.
"The equipment guy took my jacket off and gave me a ball to warm up with, and I threw it right in the ground my first throw because I was so frozen. And so I made it out there and went right down the field and threw a touchdown. It was pretty cool going from being a frozen popsicle on the sidelines and getting in there for my first game action.
"I remember it was '788 Dino.' It was a double post by Eddie on the outside, and he ran a great route. And luckily, I was able to get the ball there. My arm warmed up a little bit."
It warmed up a whole lot more two games later when he doubled his TD production during a 14-13 victory over the Saints.
"Tony Banks got hurt that game – I think right before halftime. I came in and my first drop-back was a two-minute drill, and I got sacked. It was my fault, and the line kind of looked at me sideways, like, 'What are you doing?' I apologized, got my wits about me, and came out in the second half and we won that game," said Martin, who was 12 of 19 for 232 yards and two touchdowns in the 14-13 victory.
Martin's second stint in St. Louis came in 2001 when a familiar face reached out after he'd been cut by Jacksonville following training camp.
"Mike Martz was with the Rams my first year and we had a good relationship," Martin said of the Rams second-year head coach. "We got to know each other over the first few years of my career. And when I got released, immediately, I got a call from Mike. He wanted to bring me to St. Louis to sign me."
The timing couldn't have been better for Martin, who, besides the Jaguars, had spent time with Washington and Cleveland since leaving the Rams in 1997. Under Martz that season, they posted a 14-2 record, won the NFC Championship, and met New England in Super Bowl XXXVI.
"Seeing that offense with Ernie Zampese, the way Mike coached it, it was almost unrecognizable because he put his twist on it and it had evolved," Martin said. "And then, of course, with players like Marshall Faulk and all those guys, it was pretty awesome being a part of that.
"And Kurt (Warner) is an awesome guy. What you see on TV and his image, it's all true. He's just a good guy. Obviously, everybody knows his story. He didn't have the first-round draft pick story and had to make his way, and I always respected that about him.
"I kind of had the same path, a little different, to get to the NFL. So I respect that about him and how he was able to make such a great career."
Remaining with the Rams for the 2002 season, Martin played in five games (two starts), throwing for 1,216 yards and seven touchdowns. He then spent the 2003 season with the Jets before rejoining the Rams for the third time in 2004.
In 2005, he made five starts and threw for a career-high 1,277 yards with five touchdowns. Martin finished his NFL career following the 2008 campaign after stints with New Orleans and San Francisco.
"It was cool playing for several teams," he said. "I'm proud of the way I was able to battle and make rosters. As you go along in your career, you earn respect from players because they know how hard it is. And so I'm proud of that basic aspect of it, that I was able to gain respect by earning a spot on rosters.
"But when I look back at my career, even though I moved around with a lot of teams, I always feel like I'm a Ram. It's kind of my identity."
Following his playing days, Martin was offered opportunities to coach, which he declined. He wanted to step away from the game and the vagabond life he led while in the NFL. But after Martin and his family made their home in the St. Louis area as fate would have it, he would indeed eventually become a coach.
"I started coaching my son and his middle school team in fifth grade. We started a team with all the school buddies that he grew up with," Martin said. "That kind of led to me connecting with the local high school coach. I got involved with him and became the offensive coordinator (at Parkway West) and did that for nine or 10 years. I coached middle school and high school at the same time, and I loved it.
"Just a slower pace and way to be around the game without all the high-level pressure and anxiety and all that entails. It was really good to be around the game. And whether I realized it at the time, football's been my life since I was a little kid. When you get away from it, you want to be back around it."
Spending last season as an offensive analyst at his alma mater, Weber State in Ogden, Utah, Martin joined Marc Lillibridge's staff at Missouri Baptist University in suburban St. Louis earlier this year as the passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach.
"I actually reached out to Marc because it was a local school. It's like three miles from my front door," Martin said. "I had good conversations with him and decided I wanted to be back in St. Louis. This is a smaller school, an NAIA school, but it was an opportunity to be back home near my family. [Martin and his wife, Kelly, have three adult children: Jack, Ally, and Andrew.]
"I'm appreciative of the experiences I got to have, being able to play in the league and meet so many great coaches and be around so many good guys and players. I've been to so many places, and have experienced so many things, and be at the high level in the best sports league in the world, I think. I'm just appreciative and just lucky and I'm blessed to be able to have done that."
