View source for Marc Bulger

{{Short description|American football player (born 1977)}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Marc Bulger
| image       = Marc Bulger 2004-10-07.jpg
| caption     = Bulger in 2004
| number      = 10
| position    = [[Quarterback]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date and age|1977|4|5|mf=y}}
| birth_place = [[Pittsburgh|Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
| death_date  =
| death_place = 
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 2
| weight_lbs  = 208
| high_school = [[Central Catholic High School (Pittsburgh)|Central Catholic]] (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)
| college     = [[West Virginia Mountaineers football|West Virginia]] (1995–1999)
| draftyear   = 2000
| draftround  = 6
| draftpick   = 168
| pastteams   = * [[New Orleans Saints]] ({{NFL Year|2000}})*
* [[Atlanta Falcons]] ({{NFL Year|2000}})*
* [[St. Louis Rams]] ({{NFL Year|2000}}–{{NFL Year|2009}})
* [[Baltimore Ravens]] ({{NFL Year|2010}})
| highlights  = * 2× [[Pro Bowl]] ([[2004 Pro Bowl|2003]], [[2007 Pro Bowl|2006]])
* Second-team All-[[Big East Conference (1979–2013)|Big East]] (1998)
| statlabel1  = Passing attempts
| statvalue1  = 3,171
| statlabel2  = Passing completions
| statvalue2  = 1,969
| statlabel3  = Completion percentage
| statvalue3  = 62.1%
| statlabel4  = [[Touchdown|TD]]–[[Interception|INT]]
| statvalue4  = 122–93
| statlabel5  = [[Passing yards]]
| statvalue5  = 22,814
| statlabel6  = [[Passer rating]]
| statvalue6  = 84.4
| pfr         = B/BulgMa00 
}}

'''Marc Robert Bulger''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ʊ|l|dʒ|ər}}; born April 5, 1977) is an American former professional [[American football|football]] player who was a [[quarterback]] for 11 seasons in the [[National Football League]] (NFL), primarily with the [[St. Louis Rams]]. He played [[college football]] for the [[West Virginia Mountaineers football|West Virginia Mountaineers]]. Bulger was selected by the [[New Orleans Saints]] in the sixth round of the [[2000 NFL draft]]. He was also a member of the [[Atlanta Falcons]] and [[Baltimore Ravens]], but played the entirety of his regular season career with the Rams.

==College career==
Bulger played [[college football]] for the [[West Virginia Mountaineers football|West Virginia Mountaineers]]. He was a sport management major.

===College statistics===

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Season
! rowspan="2"| Team
! rowspan="2"| GP
! colspan="8"| Passing
! colspan="4"| Rushing
|-
! Comp !! Att !! Pct !! Yds !! Y/A !!  TD !! Int !! Rtg !! Att !! Yds !! Avg !! TD
|-
![[1996 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|1996]] !! [[West Virginia Mountaineers football|West Virginia]]
| 6 || 19 || 42 || 45.2 || 352 || 8.4 || 3 || 1 || 134.4 || 3 || -17 || -5.7 || 0
|-
![[1997 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|1997]] !! [[West Virginia Mountaineers football|West Virginia]]
| 12 || 192 || 323 || 59.4 || 2,465 || 7.6 || 14 || 10 || 131.7 || 52 || -93 || -1.8 || 2
|-
![[1998 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|1998]] !! [[West Virginia Mountaineers football|West Virginia]]
| 12 || 274 || 419 || 65.4 || 3,607 || 8.6 || 31 || 10 || 157.3 || 33 || -92 || -2.8 || 0
|-
![[1999 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|1999]] !! [[West Virginia Mountaineers football|West Virginia]]
| 8 || 145 || 239 || 60.7 || 1,729 || 7.2 || 11 || 13 || 125.7 || 19 || -124 || -6.5 || 0
|-
! colspan="2"| Total || 38 || 630 || 1,023 || 61.6 || 8,153 || 8.0 || 59 || 34 || 140.9 || 107 || -326 || -3.0 || 2
|}

==Professional career==
{{NFL predraft
|    height ft = 6
|    height in = 1 5/8
|       weight = 208
|         dash = 4.97
|    ten split = 1.68
| twenty split = 2.87
|      shuttle = 4.34
|   cone drill = 7.46
|     vertical =
|     broad ft = 8
|     broad in = 4
|        bench =
|     arm span = 30 5/8
|    hand span = 9 1/4
|    wonderlic = 29<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.palmbeachpost.com/article/20100310/SPORTS/812035220 |title=Wonderlic scores of 2010 NFL starting quarterbacks and NFL draft QB prospects |website=palmbeachpost.com |access-date=October 19, 2021 }}{{Dead link|date=July 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
|         note = All values from NFL Combine<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://draftscout.com/dsprofile.php?PlayerId=255&DraftYear=2000 |title=Marc Bulger, West Virginia, QB, 2000 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football |website=draftscout.com |access-date=October 19, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://nflcombineresults.com/playerpage.php?i=4861 |title=Marc Bulger, Combine Results, QB - West Virginia |website=nflcombineresults.com |access-date=October 19, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BulgMa00.htm#all_combine |title=Marc Bulger Stats |website=pro-football-reference.com |access-date=October 19, 2021}}</ref>
}}

===New Orleans Saints/Atlanta Falcons===
Bulger was selected by the [[New Orleans Saints]] in the sixth round of the [[2000 NFL draft]], 168th overall, and spent training camp with the team before being waived.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2000 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/2000/draft.htm |access-date=2023-03-19 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> He was the fifth quarterback taken in the draft and one of the six taken before [[Tom Brady]].

Bulger then spent two weeks on the [[practice squad]] of the [[Atlanta Falcons]] during the [[2000 NFL season|2000 season]].

===St. Louis Rams===
==== 2000-2001 ====
The [[St. Louis Rams]] signed Bulger to the practice squad late in the 2000 season. He was signed to the active roster by the Rams on January 12, 2001. As the third string quarterback, Bulger did not see any playing time during his first season with the Rams, as the team advanced to [[Super Bowl XXXVI]].

==== 2002 ====
In 2002, after the Rams started 0–5, Bulger filled in for an injured [[Jamie Martin (American football)|Jamie Martin]], who had been filling in for the injured [[Kurt Warner]], who was the reigning league MVP. Bulger finished the season with a 6–0 record in games that he both started and finished, but he was injured early in a game against the [[Seattle Seahawks]], and the Rams ended the season at 7–9 and missed the playoffs one year removed from their NFC Championship.

==== 2003 ====
Bulger entered the 2003 season as Warner's backup, but was promoted to No. 1 on the depth chart after Warner committed five turnovers and suffered a concussion in an opening week loss to [[2003 New York Giants season|the New York Giants]]. Bulger then led the Rams to a regular-season record of 12–4, securing the [[NFC West]] title and a first-round bye. The Rams went on to lose a double-overtime thriller to the eventual NFC Champion [[2003 Carolina Panthers season|Carolina Panthers]] in the divisional round of the playoffs. Bulger made the Pro Bowl where he was the game's MVP.

==== 2004 ====
[[File:Marc Bulger in Rams locker room 2004-10-07.jpg|thumb|left|Bulger with a fan in October 2004]]
Bulger's performance in 2003 solidified his position as the Rams' starting quarterback. Warner was released in June 2004, and the Rams signed Bulger to a four-year, $19.1 million contract. The Rams went 8–8 in 2004, narrowly losing the division to the heavily favored [[2004 Seattle Seahawks season|Seattle Seahawks]], but earned a wild-card berth in a mediocre NFC.

The Rams defeated Seattle for a third time in the wild-card round, but lost the following week at the hands [[2004 Atlanta Falcons season|of the Atlanta Falcons]] in the Divisional Round by a wide 17–47 margin.

==== 2005 ====
On October 17, against [[2005 Indianapolis Colts season|the Indianapolis Colts]], Bulger injured his right shoulder. After missing two games, he returned to the field on November, 20 against the [[Arizona Cardinals]] where he re-injured his shoulder. He was then placed on IR on Christmas Day in 2005.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=2267449|title=Rams make it official, place Bulger on IR|date=December 21, 2005}}</ref> He finished the 2005 season with 14 Touchdowns, 9 Interceptions and a 94.4 passer rating.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/player/stats/_/id/2299/marc-bulger|title=Marc Bulger Stats}}</ref>

==== 2006 ====
On September 10, 2006, in a game against [[2006 Denver Broncos season|the Denver Broncos]], Bulger reached 1,000 completions faster than any quarterback in NFL history. Bulger achieved this in 45 games, two games less than ex-Rams QB [[Kurt Warner]]. [[Drew Bledsoe]] and [[Peyton Manning]] needed 48 games, and it took [[Dan Marino]] 49.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=2656381|title=The Weekly Conversation: Marc Bulger|date=November 10, 2006}}</ref>

==== 2007 ====
On July 28, 2007, Bulger signed a six-year, $62.5 million contract extension with the Rams, making him the highest-paid player in Rams history. The contract included $27 million in guaranteed money and put him in a group of six quarterbacks making $10 million a year or more. Bulger had one year remaining on a four-year, $19.1 million contract, which would have paid him $4 million in 2007.<ref>[https://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/rams/2007-07-27-carriker-deal_N.htm USA Today]</ref> In [[2007 St. Louis Rams season|the 2007 season]], Bulger was plagued with injuries through the entire season as was the entire team. Injuries on the offensive line took effect as he threw more interceptions than touchdowns for the first time in his career. He was considered one of the biggest disappointments of the season, which saw the Rams slump to 3–13.

==== 2008 ====
[[File:Marc-Bulger-Rams-vs-Jets-Nov-9-08.jpg|thumbnail|Bulger in November 2008]]
On September 23, 2008, after starting 0&ndash;3, Bulger lost his starting role to [[Trent Green]].<ref>http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/sports/rams/story/b605f70073ab0699862574cd005abbe2?OpenDocument {{dead link|date=June 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>  However, seven days later, new head coach [[Jim Haslett]] named Marc Bulger the starting quarterback for the rest of the season.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=3618158|title=Haslett restores Bulger as Rams' starting QB|date=September 30, 2008}}</ref>
On November 9, 2008, vs the Jets, Haslett replaced Bulger with Green after halftime after the Jets took a 40&ndash;0 lead in the first half, cued by four first half Rams turnovers.

A week later he was put back in as starting quarterback. His performances improved slightly as the year went on, but he still turned in another lackluster season with more interceptions than touchdowns and continuously declining completion percentages.

==== 2009 ====
Bulger was placed on season-ending [[injured reserve]] on December 26, 2009, as [[2009 St. Louis Rams season|the Rams]] slumped to a franchise-worst 1&ndash;15 record, and a 6&ndash;42 record for the three seasons from 2007 to 2009. He had thrown just five touchdown passes during the 2009 season, although his statistics remained where they had been in 2007 and 2008, apart from an improved [[interception (American football)|interception]] percentage of 2.4 percent vis-à-vis 4 percent.

Bulger asked for, and was granted, his release by the Rams on April 5, 2010, his 33rd birthday.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-04-05 |title=Rams release QB Bulger, avoid $8.5M salary hit |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=5057937 |access-date=2025-05-11 |website=ESPN.com|agency=Associated Press |language=en}}</ref>

===Baltimore Ravens===
On June 23, 2010, Bulger reached an agreement with the [[Baltimore Ravens]] on a one-year, $3.8 million deal that also had the possibility of increasing to $5.8 million through incentives.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://blogs.baltimoreravens.com/2010/06/23/ravens-agree-to-terms-with-qb-bulger/|title=Ravens Agree to Terms with QB Bulger « Baltimore Ravens Blogs|access-date=June 24, 2010|archive-date=June 27, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100627120503/http://blogs.baltimoreravens.com/2010/06/23/ravens-agree-to-terms-with-qb-bulger/|url-status=dead}}</ref> However, Bulger spent the entire season backing up [[Joe Flacco]] and never played a single snap.

===Retirement===
Although several teams were interested in signing him, Bulger announced his retirement from football on August 2, 2011.<ref>{{cite web |last=Schefter |first=Adam |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/6829533/ex-st-louis-rams-starter-marc-bulger-retires-nfl-11-seasons |title=Marc Bulger retires from NFL |publisher=ESPN |date=August 3, 2011 |access-date=August 3, 2011}}</ref>

==NFL career statistics==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! colspan="2"| Legend
|-
| style="background:#cfecec; width:3em;"|
| Led the league
|-
| '''Bold'''
| Career high
|}

===Regular Season===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Team
! colspan="3"| Games
! colspan="8"| Passing
! colspan="2"| Sacks
|-
! GP !! GS !! Record !! Comp !! Att !! Pct !! Yards !! Avg !! TD !! Int !! Rate !! Sck !! SckY
|-
! [[2001 NFL season|2001]] !! [[2001 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 0 || 0 || – || colspan="10"|{{abbr|DNP|Did not play}}
|-
! [[2002 NFL season|2002]] !! [[2002 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 7 || 7 || 6–1 || 138 || 214 || 64.5 || 1,826 || '''8.5''' || 14 || 6 || '''101.5''' || 12 || 102
|-
! [[2003 NFL season|2003]] !! [[2003 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 15 || 15 || '''12–3''' || 336 || 532 || 63.2 || 3,845 || 7.2 || 22 ||style="background:#cfecec; width:3em;"|'''22'''|| 81.4 || 37 || 288
|-
! [[2004 NFL season|2004]] !! [[2004 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 14 || 14 || 8–6 || 321 || 485 || 66.2 || 3,964 || 8.2 || 21 || 14 || 93.7 || 41 || 302
|-
! [[2005 NFL season|2005]] !! [[2005 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 8 || 8 || 2–6 || 192 || 287 || '''66.9''' || 2,297 || 8.0 || 14 || 9 || 94.4 || 26 || 188
|-
! [[2006 NFL season|2006]] !! [[2006 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 16 || 16 || 8–8 || '''370''' || '''558''' || 62.9 || '''4,301''' || 7.3 || '''24''' || 8 || 92.9 || '''49''' || '''366'''
|-
! [[2007 NFL season|2007]] !! [[2007 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 12 || 12 || 2–10 || 221 || 378 || 58.5 || 2,392 || 6.3 || 11 || 15 || 70.3 || 37 || 269
|-
! [[2008 NFL season|2008]] !! [[2008 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 15 || 15 || 2–13 || 251 || 440 || 57.0 || 2,720 || 6.2 || 11 || 13 || 71.4 || 38 || 263
|- 
! [[2009 NFL season|2009]] !! [[2009 St. Louis Rams season|STL]]
| 9 || 8 || 1–7 || 140 || 247 || 56.7 || 1,469 || 5.9 || 5 || 6 || 70.7 || 14 || 85
|- 
! [[2010 NFL season|2010]] !! [[2010 Baltimore Ravens season|BAL]]
| 0 || 0 || – || colspan="10"|{{abbr|DNP|Did not play}}
|- 
! colspan="2"| Total !! 96 !! 95 !! 41–54 !! 1,969 !! 3,171 !! 62.1 !! 22,814 !! 7.2 !! 122 !! 93 !! 84.4 !! 254 !! 1,863
|}

==Personal life==
Bulger was born in [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]] and graduated from Sacred Heart Middle School and [[Central Catholic High School (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)|Central Catholic High School]] in [[Pittsburgh]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=BULGEMAR01 |title=Marc Robert Bulger |publisher=datbaseBasketball.com |access-date=November 10, 2012 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023021500/http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=BULGEMAR01 |archive-date=October 23, 2012 }}</ref> He comes from a family of collegiate athletes. His father, Jim, was a quarterback for [[Notre Dame Fighting Irish football|Notre Dame]] from 1970 to 1973. His brother Jim was on the Notre Dame [[golf]] team, sister Kate was selected into the [[Women's National Basketball Association|WNBA]], and youngest sister Meg was a standout guard for his alma mater, [[West Virginia Mountaineers|West Virginia]]. Bulger married Mavis Armbruster and has two daughters.<ref>{{cite news |title=Down on the farm: Bulger's life after football takes unexpected twist |url=https://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/down-on-the-farm-bulger-s-life-after-football-takes/article_4b75eef0-c726-5532-9b1a-b300010f208b.html |access-date=June 24, 2018 |publisher=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |date=July 19, 2016}}</ref> His mother is of Irish descent.{{citation needed|date=June 2018}} {{As of|2017}}, he now lives in Brentwood, Tennessee.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lara |first1=Julio |title=Ex-Rams QB Marc Bulger Finally Sells Missouri Home, Then Buys in Tennessee |url=https://www.realtor.com/news/celebrity-real-estate/marc-bulger-sells-and-buys/ |website=realtor.com |access-date=June 24, 2018 |date=January 23, 2017}}</ref>

Since retirement, Bulger has picked up the sport of [[curling]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sports.yahoo.com/jared-allen-evidently-serious-winning-curling-medal-olympics-233810139.html|title = Jared Allen was evidently serious about winning a curling medal in Olympics| date=November 28, 2018 }}</ref> He played in the 2018 [[Curl Mesabi Classic]], which is an event of the [[World Curling Tour]]. He threw [[lead (curling)|lead]] rocks for the [[John Benton (curler)|John Benton]] team, which included fellow former football player [[Jared Allen]].<ref>[https://www.curlingzone.com/event.php?view=Teams&eventid=5366 CurlingZone]</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Footballstats |nfl=Marc-Bulger}}
*{{Sports links}}

{{West Virginia Mountaineers quarterback navbox}}
{{Los Angeles Rams starting quarterback navbox}}
{{Saints2000DraftPicks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bulger, Marc}}
[[Category:1977 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:Atlanta Falcons players]]
[[Category:Baltimore Ravens players]]
[[Category:National Conference Pro Bowl players]]
[[Category:New Orleans Saints players]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Pittsburgh]]
[[Category:Players of American football from St. Louis]]
[[Category:St. Louis Rams players]]
[[Category:West Virginia Mountaineers football players]]
[[Category:Central Catholic High School (Pittsburgh) alumni]]