Fagnano was stunned when the general manager of the Baltimore Ravens told the quarterback that he had made the team's 53-man roster. Fagnano's mom said she wasn't. "I knew you would, sweetheart," she told him.
It would be perfectly understandable if UConn alum Joe Fagnano has some of those “pinch me” moments over the next few days, when he wakes up from a dream that he is on the 53-man roster as a quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens.
To prove it really happened, all Fagnano must do is watch the video that the Ravens put out Monday, showing the moment general manager Eric DeCosta told the QB on Sunday night that he made the team.
He walked into DeCosta’s office with the look of someone expecting to get in trouble with the principal. In disbelief, his expression did not change immediately.
“Are you serious?” Fagnano, 25, asked. “Can I sit down?”
He was serious
DeCosta had the pleasure of letting Fagnano and a second undrafted free agent, 23-year-old Ethan Burke, know they would be with the Ravens when the season opens Sept. 13 against the Colts in Indianapolis.
Fagnano spent seven seasons in college – four at Maine, three as the QB at UConn, never giving up despite injuries, hoping for a moment like that one. Burke, a 6-foot-6 outside linebacker who was a high school All-American in lacrosse, played at Texas.
It had to be one of the best moments of the weekend for DeCosta, too, who had to have tough conversations with a couple of dozen players he let go.
DeCosta called Fagnano "Cinderella man."
Fagnano is third on the depth chart behind two-time NFL Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson and veteran backup Tyler Huntley.
Mom and Dad
The Ravens’ video includes the touching moments that Fagnano and Burke called their parents.
"I thought they were gonna let me go, and then they just surprised me and said I made it," a teary Fagnano told his mother as his father joined in on the call. "Yeah, I made the team."
“I knew you would,” his mom replied. “I knew you would, sweetheart.”
From rags to riches
Just because Fagnano, Burke and others across the NFL enter the league as undrafted free agents, it doesn’t mean they are destined to spend their careers on the bench. They can be starters. They can win Super Bowls. Or if they dream big, they one day could wind up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
There’s precedent. These players are among those who went from undrafted to a bronze bust in Canton, Ohio, according to the NFL.
Quarterbacks Warren Moon and Kurt Warner.
Tight end Antonio Gates.
Offensive linemen Larry Little, Jim Langer.
Defensive linemen John Randle, Bill Willis.
Defensive back Dick “Night Train” Lane, Willie Wood, Willie Brown.
Kicker Adam Vinatieri.
And for more examples of the achievements of undrafted free agents, how about these Super Bowl winners?
The list includes Drew Pearson, London Fletcher, James Harrison, Priest Holmes, Jason Peters and Jeff Feagles.
There’s no doubt that UConn nation will be cheering for Fagnano.
