A client actually paid me to list who I thought were the greatest quarterbacks in National Football League (NFL) history. As I mentioned recently in my articles about the NFL's negligence on the concussions issue, I don't even watch NFL games anymore, but I read a lot.
The client wanted an article related to contemporary NFL news. I don't know much about contemporary NFL news, but I convinced the client that Peyton Manning's standout play recently would make readers interested in a debate about the greatest quarterbacks ever. I can't post the article I wrote for the client, but I will give Storeboard's readers my list, which I expanded from 20 to 30 so they will have something "fresh." (I also listed reasons for Nos. 11 through 20, which I didn't do for the client)
Here is my list. It should be noted that I posted a photo of Dallas quarterback Roger Staubach (with coach Tom Landry) rather than Joe Montana for the purpose of extending my streak of posting photos of Texans with my stories to four (and getting readers to be surprised that I may be ranking Staubach No. 1).
My list:
1. Joe Montana: Statistically, he might not be in the Top 10, but he was the best in the playoffs. He won three Super Bowl MVPs and threw 11 touchdowns and no interceptions in four Super Bowl wins.
2. Peyton Manning: Best regular-season quarterback ever with a record 12 Pro Bowl selections, but his playoff performances pale in comparison to Montana's.
3. Otto Graham: The best quarterback of the 1950s led Cleveland to seven championships in 10 years and is No. 1 all-time in yards per pass attempt.
4. Johnny Unitas: The best quarterback of the 1960s made the Pro Bowl 10 times between 1957 and 1967 while starring for Baltimore.
5. Tom Brady: Better than Manning in playoffs with three Super Bowl wins to Manning's one, but he has been first-team all-pro twice to Manning's six selections.
6. John Elway: Elway and Brett Favre are the two most talented quarterbacks ever, but Elway threw way too many interceptions during the first half of his career.
7. Dan Marino: Was No. 1 all-time in touchdowns and yards for a long time, but he never won a Super Bowl and was a terrible runner.
8. Brett Favre: Holds all the major career records, but never stopped throwing dumb interceptions (he's No. 1 in career interceptions by a wide margin).
9. Roger Staubach: The best quarterback of the 1970s and probably the smartest quarterback ever. Statistics can't tell his story because he only played 11 years due to a five-year commitment to the Navy.
10. Fran Tarkenton: A great runner who was No. 1 in career passing yards and touchdowns from the 1970s through the 1990s.
11. Bart Starr: Quarterbacked Green Bay to five NFL titles in seven years.
12. Sammy Baugh: Best quarterback of the NFL's early years (pre-1950) was also an all-star punter.
13. Drew Brees: Holds the record for most passing yards in a season.
14. Warren Moon: Played six years in Canada because NFL executives were bigots who believed African-Americans weren't smart enough to play quarterback.
15. Steve Young: Has the best passer rating ever of retired players, but he barely played for several years because he was Montana's backup.
16. Terry Bradshaw: Rated higher by many experts because of his four Super Bowl wins, but he was mediocre for the first half of his career.
17. Dan Fouts: No. 2 in career yards when he retired in 1987.
18. Sid Luckman: Starred in 1940s and held most Chicago Bears' QB records for another 60 years.
19. Troy Aikman: Helped Dallas win three Super Bowls with his accuracy, but he was rarely spectacular.
20. Len Dawson: American Football League experts ranked him as the second-best quarterback in AFL history behind Joe Namath, but Namath's play plummeted in the NFL due to injuries.
21. Joe Namath
22. Aaron Rodgers (will go higher with longevity)
23. Y.A. Tittle
24. Norm Van Brocklin
25. Kurt Warner
26. Sonny Jurgensen
27. Jim Kelly
28. Bobby Layne
29. Bob Griese
30. Eli Manning
I wish I could put Kenny Stabler and Ken Anderson, whom I wrote a feature article on, on the list, but they're not in the NFL Hall of Fame and my studying of their records shows why. Yes, I studied this. Yes, I need a better life.
|