John Elway says he could still ‘sling it’ in NFL, just couldn’t take hits

I guess it’s your day for publicity if you’re a retired NFL quarterback.

After Brett Favre was reportedly asked if he’d join the St. Louis Rams, John Elway was asked by Fox Sports 1 if he’d still be able to return to the NFL, assuming he wanted to.

Elway was candid in his interview, suggesting that he’d have little trouble with the vast majority of the league rigors (especially throwing), though said the hits would do him in:

"“I can sling it, I just can’t get hit,” said Elway, now the Denver Broncos’ executive vice president of football operations. “That’s the hard thing about playing in this league when you play for a long, long time is the body goes before the mind. And I think that the older you get when you’re playing, you feel like you get better because the fact that the experience helps you so much and the knowledge of the game helps you so much.“What we don’t realize is that the body doesn’t go along with the mind. The body goes in the other direction.”"

Elway was also asked about Favre and his ability to return. The former Denver Broncos great said that while he feels Favre is likely in great shape, he questions if he he would be able to stand up to the physical nature of the league, something that Favre apparently agrees with considering his decision to stay retired.