The Evolution of the Quarterback: Yesterday's Legends vs. Today's Greats
By on August 15, 2011
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Is Kurt Warner in the same group as Peyton Manning and Joe Montana?
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Aaron Rodgers is already one of the greatest Qb's in the NFL and he's only just getting started
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No matter what happens from here, Manning will go down in history as one of the top three quarterbacks of all time
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Montana benefited greatly from Bill Walsh's west coast offense
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When Steve Young stepped in to replace Montana, the 49ers hardly missed a beat.
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It's a Tom Brady world and we're all just living in it.
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Every thing about Drew Brees said he'd never be a successful NFL Qb coming out of college. His stats and accomplishments say different
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Even without a Super Bowl ring, Dan Marino is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game
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Breat Farve: The second greatest Qb in Packer history behind Aaron Rodgers
Like Dan Marino, McNabb doesn't have the hardware to put on the shelf, yet, but definitely has the body of work to be considered one of the greats
Daunte Culpepper will never be considered by the NFL purists as one of the great Qb's in history but his stats are impressive to say the least
Randall was the best athlete on the field in almost every game and had a better career passer rating than Warren Moon, Johnny Unitas, and John Elway.
Warren Moon could be the most underrated quarterback in the history of the NFL
Big Ben continues to build upon an already impressive career
Dan Fouts, along with head coach Don Coryell, raised the bar for all future quarterbacks in the NFL. And what we have today is a direct result of that.
Elway led the Broncos to six AFC Championship games and five Super Bowls, winning the last two to solidify himself as one of the games greatest Qb's.
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Van Brocklin could be statistically the best quarterback to ever play the game considering the era he played in
Like Van Brocklin, Otto Graham's numbers were impressive considering he played in the 40's and 50's and only started 114 games
Unitas' record of throwing a touchdown pass in 47 consecutive games (between 1956–1960) remains unsurpassed as of 2011.
Bledsoe ranks fifth all-time in completions, seventh in passing yards,and 13th in touchdown passes. Bledsoe's NFL career passer rating of (77.1) surpasses nine Hall of Fame Quarterbacks
Michael Vick is one of the most scrutinized figures in the NFL today. But regardless if you love him or hate him, no one can deny the fact that he is one of the most electrifying athletes to ever play the position
Unfortunately, Jim Kelly will always be remembered as the quarterback that lost in four consecutive Super Bowl appearances.
Staubach was instrumental in developing the Cowboys into becoming one of the best teams of the 1970s and led the team to nine of the Cowboys' record-setting twenty consecutive winning seasons
Y.A. Tittle was the first and one of only eight quarterbacks in NFL history to have achieved consecutive 30-touchdown passing seasons.The only thing missing from Tittle's impressive résumé was an NFL championship.
Esiason was one of the most prolific left-handed quarterbacks in NFL history
The Titans' all time leading passer, McNair led Tennessee to the playoffs four times, and the Ravens once, and played in Super Bowl XXXIV with the Titans
"The Grand Old Man" George Blanda is the Cal Ripken of professional football. Blanda played 26 years as a placekicker, punter, and quarterback. At the time of his retirement Blanda had scored more points than anyone in the history of the NFL. He was also one of only three players to play in four different decades, and he holds the record for most extra points kicked.
Rich Gannon spent the last six years of his career with the Oakland Raiders where he experienced the majority of his success
Just don't call him Chris....
Phil Simms spent his first few years with the Giants struggling with injuries and inconsistent play. But in 1984 with the help of head coach Bill Parcels and offensive coordinator Erhardt, Simms emerged as the offensive leader for the Giants and eventually leading them to two Super Bowl victories
During his years in Jacksonville, Brunell was selected to the Pro-Bowl three times, in 1997, 1998, and 2000 and awarded the Pro Bowl MVP in the 1997 game. With Brunell starting, the Jaguars won an AFC Central Division title and became the first NFL expansion team to make the playoffs three times in its first four seasons of play
Krieg is one of the most prolific passers in NFL history, ranking among the all-time top 15 in most passing categories
When Williams was chosen to be the starter in Super Bowl XXII he became the first black quarterback to play in a Super Bowl and is to date the only black quarterback to win the Super Bowl
Troy Aikman was a major part of a Dallas Cowboy's dynasty that reined supreme throughout the 90's
Namath is best known for boldly guaranteeing a Jets' victory over Don Shula's NFL Baltimore Colts led by legendary Qb Johnny Unitas in Super Bowl III and then making good on his prediction.During his thirteen years in the AFL and NFL he played for three division champions (the 1968 and 1969 AFL East Champion Jets and the 1977 NFC West Champion Rams), earned one league championship, and one "world championship".
Starr has the second-highest playoff passer rating (104.80, behind current Green Bay Packer Aaron Rodgers' 112.6)of any quarterback in NFL history and a playoff record of 9–1. Starr's career completion percentage of 57.4 was an NFL best when he retired in 1972. Starr also held the Packers' franchise record for games-played (196) for 32 years, through the 2003 season
One of Jurgensen's most memorable games was during the 1965 season, when the Cowboys took a 21-0 lead at RFK Stadium. Jurgensen then threw for 411 yards, leading the team back to win 34–31. He rushed for a touchdown on a quarterback sneak and threw a game-winning 35-yard pass to Bobby Mitchell.
Tarkenton played for the Vikings from 1961 to 1966, during which time he frequently locked horns with head coach Norm Van Brocklin,who disdained the idea of a mobile quarterback, a concept that Tarkenton dramatically advanced in the NFL
Testaverde holds the NFL record for having thrown a touchdown pass in 21 consecutive seasons. Testaverde also holds the record for most losses by a starting quarterback with 123. In addition, he holds the NFL record for throwing touchdown passes to 70 different players. Also, he holds the second highest completion percentage in a single game during the regular season
Kosar threw with a high rate of accuracy and rarely forced throws or made bad decisions. In 1990 and 1991, Kosar set a league record by throwing 308 consecutive passes without an interception
Bradshaw had a powerful – albeit at times erratic – arm and called his own plays throughout his football career. His physical skills and on-the-field leadership played a major role in Pittsburgh Steelers history. During his career, he passed for more than 300 yards in a game only seven times, but three of those performances came in the post-season, and two of those in Super Bowls. In four career Super Bowl appearances he passed for 932 yards and 9 touchdowns, both Super Bowl records at the time of his retirement. In 19 postseason games he completed 261 passes for 3,833 yards.
Morrall is considered to have been the greatest backup quarterback in NFL history.
At the time of Ken's retirement following the 1986 season, he held NFL records for consecutive pass completions (20), completion percentage for a single game (20 of 22, 90.9%, vs. Pittsburgh in 1974) and completion percentage for a season (70.6% in 1982), as well as the Super Bowl records for completion percentage (73.5%) (since broken by Phil Simms) and completions
Will the curse ever be broken?
Hadl was the AFL's leading passer in both 1965 and 1968, and was a four-time AFL All Star
Bill Belichick described Jones as the best "pure passer" he ever saw. The widely respected scout Ernie Accorsi is quoted as saying that if Bert Jones had played under different circumstances, he probably would have been the greatest player ever
Gabriel was the first Asian-American to start as an NFL quarterback
Jaworski's 170 regular season touchdowns with the Philadelphia Eagles were the most in franchise history until he was surpassed by Donovan McNabb on September 21, 2008, 22 years after Jaworski left Philadelphia
Dawson led the Chiefs to three AFL Championships and a victory in the fourth and final AFL-NFL World Championship Game, for which he won the game's MVP award
Plunkett is the only eligible quarterback to start, and win, two Super Bowls without being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Griese is quite possibly the most overrated quarterback in the history of the NFL due to the fact that he was the starting Qb for the 1972 undefeated Miami Dolphins squad
Stabler was known for studying his playbook by the light of a nightclub jukebox and for his affinity for female fans.As Hall of Fame guard Gene Upshaw said, "When we were behind in the fourth quarter, with our backs to our end zone, no matter how he had played up to that point, we could look in his eyes and you knew, you knew, he was going to win it for us. That was an amazing feeling."
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