Happy to be here, QB Lytle came close to being a Met

A conversation with Matt Lytle, interviewed by Seattle Times staff reporter Percy Allen.

A weekly series of one-on-one interviews with Seahawk players. Reserve quarterback Matt Lytle talks about why he said no to the New York Mets and $2 million in high school, the comparisons between him and Steve Young, and the war stories he shares with Jon Kitna.

Seattle Times: Tell us about last Sunday.

Matt Lytle: Yeah, that was my first regular-season game. It was nice to get my feet wet going in there. I wasn't very nervous going in there.

ST: Come on. You weren't nervous?

ML: Nah. I was kind of looking forward to throwing the ball, but it was too late in the game and we just wanted to get out of there and not make it any worse than what it was.

ST: So when Coach Mike Holmgren looked at you at halftime, gave you that nod and said: "Matt, get ready," what went through your mind?

ML: I pretty much knew that's what was going to happen. Brock (Huard) was pretty much done playing, and Kit (Jon Kitna), I knew he was a little banged up. You get the butterflies a little bit when your head coach says get ready, and obviously going in for the first time in a regular-season game, you get a little jittery, but I was pretty excited.

ST: What's the one thing you took from that experience?

ML: It's that you can't be overwhelmed with the surroundings or anything like that. You have to be nice and calm and show the guys that you're ready to go. And when I got in there, I joked around a little bit and made sure that everybody was relaxed and went at it that way.

ST: Was it intimidating to know that you had to follow two guys who had just gotten knocked out? Were you scared?

ML: Freakier things have happened in football games. And in Brock and Kit's situation, it was in a scrambling situation. They could have gotten down on the ground rather than taking a big hit, but the unfortunate thing was they didn't get down and they got knocked around a little bit.

ST: OK, now let's turn to you. Help fill in the pieces between your college days at the University of Pittsburgh and your time with the Seahawks.

ML: I'm a guy that not many people know about. I had to take the long road to get here. I worked my rear end off. Going over to the World League and spending time over there. I was very fortunate that I had Carolina. Carolina believed in me and I went down there and I was very fortunate to come here with (offensive coordinator Gil Haskell). I'm super excited to be here with Coach Holmgren because he's definitely an offensive-minded guy and he does well with quarterbacks. . . .

I guess you can say I'm a guy that everyone says, "He's got a great arm, but . . ." I'd like to believe that I can make some things happen with my feet when things break down, but I'd rather not. I'd rather beat the defense throwing the ball.

ST: You played at Pittsburgh and you got a bit of a Dan Marino look going for you. Did you ever get comparisons?

ML: No, not really. Whenever we played on TV, I got the Steve Young thing. And a little bit of the (Mark) Brunell thing, being left-handed and being able to scramble. But growing up, Dan was one of the guys I looked up to. I worked out a couple of times with him when he came to Pitt and he's a great guy. . . .

ST: Why Pittsburgh?

ML: My main reason I chose Pitt was because Matt Cavanaugh and Ken (Karcher) were on the staff at that time when I was being recruited, and they played in the NFL as quarterbacks.

But I had to make a tough decision out of high school whether to play baseball or football. Having the Mets in the World Series right now, it will always bring a question in my mind because the Mets were the team that drafted me out of high school. Sometimes I think if I'd be in the World Series right now.

ST: Which position did you play in baseball?

ML: I was a pitcher and played some first base and center field, but mainly I was drafted as a pitcher.

ST: What round were you drafted?

ML: The Mets had told me they wanted to draft me high and a lot of teams said they were going to draft me in the first or second rounds until I signed a letter of intent to play football. Then most of the teams backed off, and I saw the scouts decreasing. But the Mets came and said, "We're going to draft you regardless. We want to pay for your school, you can go and play football for Pitt and during the spring you can come with us and play all the way until training camp for football."

But then you'd have to deal with being a walk-on at school, and you get a little different treatment. I think my parents were the biggest factors who pushed me toward an education.

ST: Do you still have a fastball?

ML: I'd like to think so. It'd be interesting to see what I could throw if I got my arm in baseball shape. In high school, I was throwing 91, 92 and 93 (mph), and I know I've gotten a lot stronger since high school. Now what does that mean? I might have gotten too bulky, but I'd like to see what I can throw now.

ST: Why did the NFL miss you coming out of Pitt?

ML: My senior year, we had a very young team. I think we only had eight seniors, and it was just one of those recycling years. I took some lumps my senior year. I had a couple of bruises and bumps here and there. Obviously if Pitt was 10-1 and had played in a bowl game, I would have been drafted. That's just the way it goes.

ST: Describe what it was like playing overseas.

ML: I played in Dusseldorf with the Rhein Fire, and we won a World Bowl. It was Danny Wuerffel and myself, we split time. I had a great experience in Europe. I learned a lot. I met a lot of great people. Saw a lot of culture, a lot of sights.

But my main thing was to get better. That was my time. I was on TV all of the time back in the states. It was on Fox. And I wanted to prove that, OK, I wasn't drafted, but I can play.

ST: You and Kitna ever share war stories about playing in Europe?

ML: (Laughs.) Yeah, we talk about NFL Europe all of the time, and I always tease him because we spanked Barcelona twice this year and he was a Barcelona guy.

ST: How old are you?

ML: I just turned 25 in September.

ST: Married?

ML: Single.

ST: Where's your hometown?

ML: Hometown is Reading, Pa. Well, a small town outside of Reading, Pa. That's where my parents live. I grew up in the Reading area most of my life and was born in Lancaster, Pa.

ST: You'll likely be the backup this week. Is this the biggest week in your professional career?

ML: I think every week is big. Each week I try to learn more and more and pick things up from the coaches and other players. But yeah, maybe so. Because Brock is a little bit dinged up and Kit is a little bit dinged up, I'm going to have to put more time in studying and being ready if my number is called.

ST: Last thing. If you were that high-school kid in Reading, Pa., and you had an offer from the Mets and a scholarship from Pitt, which would you choose?

ML: Let's put it this way: If the Mets said to me: "We're going to give you a $2 million signing bonus," then it's all about business.

Because what would you do? You're either a free agent in football making maybe $10,000 to sign or you're a first-round draft pick in baseball and you get $2 million to sign. There comes a time when you have to look out for yourself and your family rather than which you would like to play more.

ST: So you'd choose the Mets?

ML: (Laughs.) Yeah, I'd probably choose the Mets.