Steve McNair Stephen LaTreal McNair ( February 14 , 1973 – July 4 , 2009 ) , nicknamed Air McNair , was an American football quarterback who spent the majority of his National Football League ( NFL ) career with the Tennessee Titans . McNair played college football at Alcorn State in Lorman , Mississippi , where he won the 1994 Walter Payton Award as the top player in NCAA Division I - AA . He was drafted third overall by the NFL ' s Houston Oilers in 1995 , becoming the Oilers ' regular starting quarterback in 1997 , their first season in Tennessee ( though he started six games over the prior two seasons in Houston ) , and remained the starting quarterback for the Titans through 2005 . After the 2005 season , McNair was traded to the Baltimore Ravens , with whom he played for two seasons before retiring after thirteen NFL seasons . McNair led the Titans to the playoffs four times , and the Ravens once , and played in Super Bowl XXXIV with the Titans . He is the Titans ' all - time leading passer . McNair was selected to the Pro Bowl three times , was All - Pro and Co - MVP in 2003 , all as a Titan . On July 4 , 2009 , McNair was fatally shot by his mistress , Sahel Kazemi , in a murder – suicide . Early life . McNair was born in Mount Olive , Mississippi , and attended Mount Olive High School as a freshman in the fall of 1987 , where he played football , baseball , and basketball in addition to running track . As a junior , McNair led Mount Olive to the state championship . McNair also played free safety in high school , and in 1990 alone , he intercepted fifteen passes , raising his career total to 30 , which tied the mark established by Terrell Buckley at Pascagoula High School . An All - State selection , McNair was named an All - American by Super Prep magazine . The Seattle Mariners drafted him in the 35th round of the 1991 MLB amateur draft . College career . McNair was initially offered a full scholarship to the University of Florida to play defensive back , but wanting to play quarterback , McNair chose division I - AA Alcorn State . McNair played college football for Alcorn State University , a historically black university which competes in the NCAA ' s Division I - AA ( now known as the Football Championship Subdivision ) Southwestern Athletic Conference ( SWAC ) . In 1992 , McNair threw for 3 , 541 yards and 29 touchdowns , and ran in for 10 more scores . The Braves fashioned a record of 7 – 4 , including a last - second victory in their rematch with Grambling . In that contest , McNair returned from an injury and helped Alcorn State , trailing late in the final period , move deep into Tigers ' territory . Then , despite a leg injury , he tucked the ball under his arm and dove into the end zone for the winning touchdown . The victory over Grambling helped the Braves qualify for the I - AA playoffs . McNair helped Alcorn State to another good year in 1993 , as the Braves upped their record to 8 – 3 while McNair threw for more than 3 , 000 yards and 30 touchdowns . He was also named First - Team All - SWAC for the third year in a row . In his senior season , McNair gained nearly 6 , 000 yards rushing and passing , along with 53 touchdowns . In the process , he surpassed more than a dozen records and was named an All - American . In addition , McNair won the Walter Payton Award as the top I - AA player and finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting behind Rashaan Salaam and Ki - Jana Carter . McNair set career records for the Football Championship Series with 14 , 496 passing yards , as well as the division record for total offensive yards with 16 , 283 career yards . The records still stand . He was a member of the fraternity Omega Psi Phi , highlighting his allegiance by tattooing “ Omega Man ” on his arm . Professional career . Houston Oilers . With the third overall pick in the 1995 NFL Draft , the Houston Oilers and new head coach Jeff Fisher selected McNair , making him at the time the highest drafted African - American quarterback in NFL history and signing him to a seven - year contract . McNair did not see his first action until the last two series of the fourth quarter in a November game versus the Cleveland Browns . Late in the season , he also appeared briefly against the Detroit Lions and New York Jets . Meanwhile , starting quarterback Chris Chandler finished as the AFC ' s fourth - best passer . In 1996 , McNair remained a backup to Chandler until starting a game in December against the Jacksonville Jaguars . Tennessee Oilers / Titans . McNair ' s first season as the Oilers ' starter in 1997 ( the team ' s first year in Tennessee ) resulted in an 8 – 8 record for the team , which played its home games at the Liberty Bowl in Memphis , Tennessee . McNair ' s 2 , 665 passing yards were the most for the Oilers since Warren Moon in 1993 , and his 13 interceptions were the fewest for a single season in franchise history . He also led the team in rushing touchdowns with eight and ranked second behind running back Eddie George with 674 yards on the ground , the third - highest total for a quarterback in NFL history . In 1998 , McNair set career passing highs with 492 attempts , 289 completions , 3 , 228 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Oilers , now competing in Nashville . He also cut his interceptions to ten , helping his quarterback rating climb to 80 . 1 . The team officially changed its name from Oilers to Titans for the 1999 season as they debuted a new stadium , Adelphia Coliseum . Early in the 1999 season , McNair was diagnosed with an inflamed disk following Tennessee ' s 36 – 35 win over the Cincinnati Bengals , and needed surgery . In his stead entered Neil O ' Donnell , a veteran who had guided the Pittsburgh Steelers to the Super Bowl four years earlier . Over the next five games , O ' Donnell led the Titans to a 4 – 1 record . McNair returned against the St . Louis Rams , and with McNair starting , Tennessee won seven of its last nine games , good for a record of 13 – 3 and second place in the AFC Central . Tennessee opened the playoffs at home against the Buffalo Bills in a Wild Card game , winning on the " Music City Miracle " and eventually advancing to Super Bowl XXXIV in a re - match with the Rams . On the final play of the game , a McNair pass to Kevin Dyson was complete , but Dyson was unable to break the plane of the goal line , giving the Rams the win . McNair signed a new six - year contract after the 1999 season worth $ 47 million . Following a 13 – 3 season in 2000 which ended in a playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens , the 28 - year - old McNair put together his most productive year as a pro in 2001 . In 2001 , McNair registered career passing highs in yards ( 3 , 350 ) , completions ( 264 ) , touchdowns ( 21 ) and quarterback rating ( 90 . 2 ) . He was also the team ' s most effective rusher , tying George for the club lead with five scores . Named to the Pro Bowl for the first time , McNair sat out the game due to a shoulder injury . In 2002 , Tennessee finished the regular season 11 - 5 and reached the playoffs . In the divisional playoff contest against the Pittsburgh Steelers , McNair threw for a career postseason high 338 yards and two touchdowns , with two interceptions , while rushing for 29 yards and another score on the ground . The game had a controversial finish when , after missing a game winning field goal at the end of regulation time and a second failed kick in overtime was negated because of a controversial running - into - the - kicker penalty on Pittsburgh ' s Dewayne Washington , kicker Joe Nedney won the game from 26 yards out 2 : 15 into overtime . Steelers coach Bill Cowher said that he called a timeout before the winning kick took place . McNair and the Titans reached the AFC Championship game but were unable to reach the Super Bowl , losing to the Oakland Raiders 41 - 24 . Between the 2002 and 2003 seasons , McNair was arrested for DUI and illegal gun possession ( in May 2003 ) . His blood alcohol was above 0 . 10 , and a 9 - mm handgun had been sitting in the front of the car . All charges related to the incident were later dropped . In December of the 2003 season , an injured calf and ankle kept McNair on the sidelines for two games , though he still finished with the best numbers of his career , including 24 touchdown passes and a quarterback rating of 100 . 4 . The Titans ended at 12 – 4 , the same record as the Colts , but Indianapolis took the AFC South division championship by virtue of its two victories over Tennessee . McNair and Colts quarterback Peyton Manning were named co - NFL MVPs following the 2003 season , which ended the Titans ' season in a playoff loss to the New England Patriots . McNair finished the ' 03 season as the league leader in passer rating and became the youngest player in NFL history to pass for 20 , 000 yards and run for 3 , 000 yards . McNair missed the 2004 season ' s fourth game with a bruised sternum , an injury suffered the previous week against Jacksonville , and played in only five more games that season . In 2005 he played in 14 games because of a back injury . This series of season - ending injuries prompted the Titans to make the business decision of locking McNair out of team headquarters in the 2006 offseason . The team wouldn ' t let him rehab in its building because it feared an injury would force the franchise to pay him $ 23 . 46 million ( his contract had been restructured so often that his salary cap reached a hard - to - manage amount ) . The Players Association ' s filed a grievance on his behalf , for which an arbitrator ruled that the team violated its contract , opening the possibility for a trade . Baltimore Ravens . Following the 2005 season , on April 30 , 2006 , the Titans allowed McNair and his agent , James " Bus " Cook , to speak with the Ravens to try to work out a deal . On May 1 , 2006 , the Baltimore Sun reported that the Baltimore Ravens might wait for McNair to be released by the Titans during free agency . Speculation was that the Titans might hold onto McNair until the week before training camp in late July if the Ravens didn ' t come up with a satisfactory trade offer for McNair according to a league source . However , on June 7 , 2006 , the two teams worked out a deal to send McNair to the Ravens for a 4th - round pick in the 2007 NFL Draft . On June 8 , McNair flew to Baltimore , passed a physical , and was announced as the newest member of the Ravens . The 2006 season saw McNair start each game for the Ravens , missing only portions of two games . In the week 14 game against the Kansas City Chiefs , McNair threw the longest touchdown pass in the Ravens ' history , when he threw an 89 yard touchdown pass to receiver Mark Clayton , McNair helped Baltimore to a 13 – 3 record and an AFC North Championship . McNair started at quarterback in his first playoff game as a Raven when his team faced the Colts on January 13 , 2007 . McNair was 18 of 29 for 173 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions , as the Ravens lost 15 – 6 . On May 9 , 2007 McNair was a passenger in a car that was pulled over for suspicion of drunk driving . Both the driver of the vehicle , his brother - in - law , and McNair were arrested for driving under the influence . Under Tennessee law , one can still be arrested for DUI even if a passenger in one ' s own car and the driver is believed to be under the influence . McNair owned the pick - up truck involved and was charged with DUI by consent . The charges were dropped on July 10 , 2007 . In 2007 , McNair did not play in Week 2 against the Jets which the Ravens won 20 – 13 . He also did not play the full game in Week 3 , however , the game was won by the Ravens , 26 – 23 . McNair missed nine more games during the rest of the season , including getting pulled after taking many hits from Steelers ' linebacker James Harrison in Week 9 , and fumbling the ball twice . McNair only started six games for the Ravens in 2007 . After thirteen seasons in the NFL , McNair announced his retirement in April 2008 . In July 2012 , McNair was named the thirty - fifth greatest quarterback of the NFL ' s post - merger era , according to Football Nation . As of October 2012 , he is the only deceased quarterback on the list . Personal life . McNair was married to Mechelle McNair from June 21 , 1997 until his death . He split his time between a farm in Mississippi and Nashville , Tennessee . McNair had two sons by Mechelle : Tyler and Trenton ; and two sons - Steve LaTreal McNair and Steven O ' Brian Koran McNair ; - by two other women . McNair earned the nickname " Air McNair " in High School . He opened his own restaurant in Nashville , which he named Gridiron9 . In addition to that , Steve McNair was the mentor to former Titans ' quarterback Vince Young , who was greatly affected by the death of his teacher . Death . On July 4 , 2009 , McNair was found dead of multiple gunshot wounds , along with the body of a young woman named Sahel Kazemi , in a condominium rented by McNair , at 105 Lea Avenue in downtown Nashville . McNair had been shot twice in the body and twice in the head , with only one of the shots coming from closer than three feet . Kazemi had a single gunshot wound to the head , which was proved to have been fired from a gun that was held to her temple . McNair was believed to have been asleep on the couch when the shooting occurred . The bodies were discovered by McNair ' s friends Wayne Neely and Robert Gaddy , who called 911 . The Nashville police declared McNair ' s death a murder - suicide , with Kazemi as the perpetrator and McNair as the victim . The 9 - mm gun used was found under Kazemi ' s body and later tests revealed " trace evidence of ( gunpowder ) residue on her left hand . " Kazemi had a worsening financial situation and also suspected that McNair was in another extramarital relationship . McNair , who was married at the time , had been dating the 20 - year - old Kazemi in the months prior to their deaths . Two days before their deaths , Kazemi was pulled over in a black 2007 Cadillac Escalade in Nashville with McNair in the passenger seat and Vent Gordon , a chef at a restaurant McNair owned , in the back seat . The vehicle was registered in the names of both McNair and Kazemi . She was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol . McNair was not arrested , instead leaving in a taxi with Gordon , despite Kazemi repeatedly asking the arresting officer to tell McNair he could come to the police car to talk to her . However , McNair later bailed Kazemi out of jail . Police later stated that after release from jail , Kazemi purchased the gun from a convicted murderer she met while looking for a buyer for her Kia . Titans owner Bud Adams released a statement regarding McNair : In a statement to the AP , Ozzie Newsome , executive vice president and general manager of the Baltimore Ravens , stated : The Titans held a two - day memorial at LP Field on July 8 and 9 , 2009 , where fans could pay their last respects to McNair . Highlights from his career were played throughout each day and fans were able to sign books that were later given to the McNair family . During the 2009 NFL season , every member of the Titans wore a commemorative " 9 " sticker placed on the back of each helmet to honor McNair . Funeral services were held for McNair at the Reed Coliseum on the campus of the University of Southern Mississippi on July 11 at 11 : 00 AM ( CST ) and he is buried at Griffith Cemetery in Prentiss , Mississippi . On October 15 , 2010 it was reported that McNair ’ s widow went to a Nashville judge and asked that at least a portion of the assets be unfrozen so that his children could have some sort of monetary source . The judge agreed and each of the four children received $ 500 , 000 .