SPORTSDAY

Posted by Scott @ 1:46 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Can't argue with Unitas at #1; he was a hell of a player. Wish I'd been able to see him play in his prime. But leaving Staubach and Aikman off that list is just wrong; at least one of them should have been there.

Posted by Rodman @ 1:52 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

If you look at their panel you will see why they got this so wrong. Elway, Marino and Dan Founts over Staubach and Aikman? Idiots. It amazes me how Elway is credited for all those comebacks when it was Roger who the phrase was named after. Roger played 10 years for the boys and we went to the playoffs 9 of those 10 years and went to 5 Super Bowls...

Posted by LG @ 1:52 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Staubach not being in the top 10 relegates this list to meaningless. Unless it is based on stats alone.

Posted by TG in Phila @ 1:55 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

1. Joe Montana (managed the game better than anyone I've ever seen!)
2. Dan Marino (no team around him, imagine if he had one!)
3. Tom Brady (arguably the best and might move up after Sunday, and he didn't even start UMich)
4. Terry Bradshaw (can't argue the 4 rings, but he did have the best D in history of the game)
5. John Elway (all those 4Q comebacks)
6. Johnny U (sorry, didn't see him play)
7. Roger Staubach (even higher if he hadn't missed 6 yrs with the Navy)
8. Troy Aikman (3 rings on a "run-first" team)

Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Fouts, in whatever order..

Posted by Creth Davis @ 1:59 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

I couldn't agree more with ESPN and that other website...

level of importance-
1. popularity
2. number of years in the league
3. personal stats
4. not being a Cowboy
5. winning playoff games
6. winning Super Bowls

Posted by S L @ 2:12 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

I simply hate best ever and 'all-time' lists or declarations. Comparing Otto Graham with Peyton Manning is like comparing a steam engines with bullet trains. And based on what? Championships? Statistics? One rewards team over individuals, the other rewards longevity over ability. You'd have a better case rating QBs with the worst luck.

As for this particular list, the only surprise is that SI writers were not involved, as this is classic anti-Cowboys bias. How do I know this? If you asked them tehy would say they penalized Staubach in his era because he didn't call his own plays, so Bradshaw gets it over him. Forget that Staubach was by far the more proficient QB by any measuring scale, he's penalized for a decision completely out of his control.

Then they penalize Aikman because he didn't have to come from behind very often and had Emmitt Smith, so Elway and Favre get it over him. Again, forget that Elway only rose to SB wins when he HAD a good running game (for which they penalize Aikman), and Favre's comebacks had more to do with his own mistkaes giving the opposition scoring chances. Ultimately, Aikman is penalized for throwing fewer picks and getting leads early that were then well-managed.

Marino and Fouts are arguable at best. How can you not say they were products of their systems as much as their own talent? Same goes for Joe Montana. Bill Walsh said many times, you could swap Joe for Danny White, their talent and strengths were so similar that the system made them completely interchangeable.

just one more reason to loathe the two week SB buildup: best ever, all time loads of crap.

Posted by Dale in Atlanta @ 2:16 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

no surprise; these lists ALWAYS "dis" Staubach, Aikman, and even Emmitt (I saw a list where he was ranked something like the EIGHTEENTH best RB of all time! Wow, for someone that far down one the list, he sure managed to get a lot of yards!)

Bottomline: these panels are like the HOF voters, they HATE the Cowboys; so they absolutely have NO Legitimacy, just like the HOF voters.

Posted by Macarthur @ 2:22 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

I don't have much of a beef with the first 6. However, at Bradshaw, I think it's highly debatable. As someone stated earlier, Bradshaw benefited big time from the Steelers defenses. If you look at his numbers, they aren't that great.

There's no way to do this without looking like a homer, but The DAllas Cowboys have played in 8 Super Bowls and won 5. They have won more playoff games than any team in the NFL. They have two Hall of FAme QBs that both have a Super Bowl MVP. And neither is in the top 10?

It's time to start up the old media bias against the Cowboys discussion...

Posted by BahstonRattwatsSuk @ 2:45 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

What else would you expect from a
MassaTWOsh!ts based company?
That's why they call it
nESPN, newEnglandSkunkPeeNetwohk.

Posted by JR @ 2:49 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

One thing is for sure, Favre is way over-rated due to his likability and longevity. But for a period of about three years, he has always done the same boneheaded stuff we saw in the championship game last week.

Posted by Gary T @ 2:53 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

This is easy. Roger Staubach is 1st, followed by Troy Aikman. Danny White ranks 3rd and "Dandy" Don Meredith is 4th. Romo is 5th but could easily move into 3rd by winning just one NFC Championship.

Posted by S L @ 3:01 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

I guess we should just be amazed that it doesn't include either Steve Grogan, Drew Bledsoe, Jim Kelly, Joe Namath, Phil Simms, or heck, even Y. A. Tittle.

I think maybe the eponymously named Rams and Redskin fans have gone apoplectic and silent at the utter lack of mention of um, geez, who would you list from those teams? Pat Haden? Billy Kilmer? Roman Gabriel? oh, never mind...

Posted by I'm fed up @ 3:02 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

More Haterade from the Eastcoast Sports Pandering Network.

Marino & Fouts = no rings

Posted by scott @ 3:18 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Aikman was a good QB on a great team. Without Emmit neither Troy nor Michael would be in the HOF nor would Dallas have 5 rings. When Troy missed games, other QB's were able to win games. When Emmit missed games, Dallas blew.

My 2 cents

Posted by ***The*Best*Cowboy*Fan*Ever*** @ 3:18 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

did they take into account Stabach's limited career due to time spent in the army after he graduated from West Point? What morons! His best years came after he was 35 y/o. Totally suspect list.

Posted by Monte @ 3:23 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Clint Dolezel has thrown over 800 touchdown passes. Maybe he's the best ever.

Posted by TG in Phila @ 3:28 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Navy, not Army...come on dude. Yes he missed 6 yrs of his prime.

S L, I'm thinking Joey Sunshine, Doug Williams, Jay Schroeder for the skins should also get some consideration. And for the Rams, don't leave out that Vince Ferragamo?

Posted by DALLASFAN @ 3:28 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

WHO CARES! I WILL SAY IT AGAIN...WHO CARES!!! KEEP YOUR STATS! KEEP YOUR RANKINGS! NONE OF THAT MATTERS! JUST GIVE ME THE 5 SUPER BOWLS! WOULD YOU TRADE EMMIT'S RUNNING TITLE FOR BEST RB EVER TITLE IN NFL HISTORY? DIDN'T THINK SO! SO KEEP YOUR RANKINGS AND BEST STATS! JUST KEEP WINNING SUPER BOWLS! HOW EVER YOU CAN WITH LESS TALENT OR BY LUCK...JUST GIVE ME A SUPER BOWL!

Posted by S L @ 3:28 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

so Scott, using your logic, I'm having trouble understanding why the Cowboys didn't fare so well when Anthony Wright or Clint Stoerner or Chad Hutchinson or Quincy Carter handed off to Emmitt instead of Aikman? (Ryan Leaf not included for the sake of keeping this a credible discussion...)

No knock on Emmitt intended, but I think we saw plenty of post-Aikman evidence to know better.

Posted by DALLASFAN @ 3:34 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

WHO CARES! I WILL SAY IT AGAIN...WHO CARES!!! KEEP YOUR STATS! KEEP YOUR RANKINGS! NONE OF THAT MATTERS! JUST GIVE ME THE 5 SUPER BOWLS! WOULD YOU TRADE EMMITT'S RUSHING TITLE AND BE HELD THE BEST EVER FOR ONE OF OUR SUPER BOWLS? DIDN'T THINK SO! SO KEEP YOUR RANKINGS AND BEST STATS! JUST KEEP WINNING SUPER BOWLS! HOW EVER YOU CAN WITH TALENT, LESS TALENT OR BY LUCK...JUST GIVE ME A SUPER BOWL! YOU THINK THE GIANTS REALLY CARE THEIR QB IS NOT ON THE LIST?

Posted by ***The*Best*Cowboy*Fan*Ever*** @ 3:38 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Also, no QB took more of beating than Aikman during that 1-15 monstrosity of an '89 rookie year after he left USC. Did they consider that in these rankings? Bradshaw took a heck of a beating also but had much of the talent already there when he came in the league. Dallas had to stock STARTING with Aikman.

Posted by wrnintex @ 3:40 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

1.Johnny Unitas
2.Fran Tarkenton
3.Roger Staubach
4.Joe Montana
5.Terry Bradshaw
6.John Elway
7.Dan Marino
8.Troy Aikman
9.Tom Brady
10.Len Dawson

Posted by ***The*Best*Cowboy*Fan*Ever*** @ 3:52 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

besides, these lists are like belly-buttons, everybody's got one!

Posted by Jason @ 4:17 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Here's my top 10 NFL QBs of all-time. I used the same logic that ESPN did, which is to say, just go with the first ten names I could think of.

1. Troy Aikman
2. Roger Staubach
3. Danny White
4. Tom Landry
5. Dirk Nowitzki
6. Meadowlark Lemon
7. Tom Brady's unborn child
8. Rowdy
9. Creth Davis
10. The robot from FOX Sports that comes on after a return from the commercial break

Posted by Jason @ 4:22 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Here's my top 10 NFL QBs of all-time. I used the same logic that ESPN did, which is to say, just go with the first ten names I could think of.

1. Troy Aikman
2. Roger Staubach
3. Danny White
4. Tom Landry
5. Dirk Nowitzki
6. Meadowlark Lemon
7. Tom Brady's unborn child
8. Rowdy
9. Creth Davis
10. The robot from FOX Sports that comes on after a return from the commercial break

Posted by Hap @ 5:42 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Experts say these are the ALL-TIME WORST, MOST OVERRATED QB's !

1) Mark Bulger- sucks
2) Kurt Warner- is a joke
3) Roman Gabriel- couldn't pass gas
4) Sonny Jerk-ensen -couldn't stay sober
5) Jason Campbell-alltime INT leader/critical pt.
6) Billy Kilmer-should stay in the teepee

BEST ? Among the best are Aikman . And just who do you think these "EX-PERverTS" would call on if they trailed late in the 4th ? Staubach and/or Elway. Brett Favre ? I like him but he just does not belong here.

There is a HUGE difference in Passers and Great QB's. Fouts and Marino DO NOT belong.

Posted by Redskins_Rule @ 5:51 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

hey HAP...Kilmer could throw 'em back with the best of all time...LOL...gotta give you that one re Jurgenson...

Posted by DougO @ 6:01 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Staubach has been practically re-written out of the history books by the idiot media. You never hear his name mentioned, because all of those east coast elitist media jerks HATE the Cowboys, for showing up all their favorite teams. Staubach was the best ever. I'll accept a tie with Unitas, nothing less. Most younger writers nowdays have never even seen great NFL football.

Posted by JoeG @ 6:37 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

All of these players are probably better all-around football players, and better leaders, but is there a doubt in anybody's mind that Peyton is the best quarterback? He is insanely good at reading defenses, he probably has the best actual quarterback mechanics. He has only been to the big game once, but his defense has always sucked until recently, so it isn't always his doing. But as far as actual qb-ing, he has to be the best. Put it this way, if you were building a quarterback from scratch, who would you pick in terms of qb technical mechanics, who would you pick in terms of quarterback know-how? Peyton without a doubt. He loses in terms of guts, leadership, intangibles, but those aren't quarterback-specific traits.

Posted by BahstonRattriotsSahk @ 6:37 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Brady will choke next week, proving he doesn't belong on that list. MassaTwosh!ts fans and sports-tabloid writers alike will be proven wrong, when the *Rattriots bring home an 18-1 record. They will talk shouda coulda forever, but the facts will show they had the "Best Team Never".

* = whiners, cheaters and losers.

Posted by ptm @ 7:10 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

The cowboys hating continues. Favre has been playing 75 years, he's gotta be on the list. If Marino would have played half the time his records would be untouchable. Favre 1 S.B win. and Aikman not on the list. There idiots. As much as I hate the pats, right now I would take Brady over all of them even if they don't win Sunday. He's just unflappable, and his season shows that,and there coaching is purely the best. As much as I hate Belicheat they are the best prepared team I have ever seen

Posted by Bob @ 8:24 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

Okay. This P.O.S. security thing keeps f'ing this up. Here's one last try...this is funny.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=K2triiYXSY8

Posted by colorado kool aid @ 8:24 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

they're entitled to their list, but I don't yet have Brady that high (although I think he will end up there) . . . Manning is too high right now and Fouts doesn't belong in the top 10

I'd take Aikman over all but Montana and Elway -- just because he had Smith in the backfield and a team that seldom went into the 4th quarter behind doesn't mean he didn't in fact have perhaps the stongest, most accurate passing arm in NFL history. I'd put Staubach over Graham as well, but if they have Roger in the next 5, I can live with that.

Posted by jtd86 @ 8:44 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

You are moronic if you don't put Staubach top 5! Aikman, I can understand but to put Dan Fouts over Roger?

Posted by shorty @ 9:39 PM Wed, Jan 30, 2008

The Cowboys have the best PLAYBOY

Posted by LarryZeppo @ 3:57 AM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

ESPN does these lists to fulfill FCC and Equal Opportunity regulations which require a certain amount of programming by and for Alzheimer's patients.

Posted by john pupparo @ 6:44 AM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

Well to me without being biased, the rules that they had to play by in staubachs days were much more tougher to play in, for example one could knock down recievers all over the field, which would make completing pases much more difficult compared to the rules today. and that the offensive lineman in rogers day could not use their hands to block as they can today meaning quarterbacks are not as hit as hard and often as in rogers day, and the last minute comebacks that roger had , and the passing titles that he won, and the superbowls he was in and the ability to run and scramble to avoid sacks, when he retired he was rated the best qb of all time, so he has to be right uo there with the best, now troy as much as i like him and he was mentally tough but he is not in the top ten more like top 40, cause his stats are average, he did not posess a strong arm, and was very imobile, he had really four good years, the super bowl years, but if you look at his whole stay in the n.f.l. the first three years were awful for him, the next four ok and the last four bad he threw many interceptions the last four years, and against the panthers in the playoffs he threw 3 picks and lost a chance to play the packers in the title game and then the game against the cardnals he did the same, and against the vikings the same and his last 2 years was always spent on the ground with concusions, so roger was by far better then troy, and i would say a tie with the best in history

Posted by john pupparo @ 7:11 AM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

Now really guys use common sense here, the top ten can one say one was better then the other , listen they all had the same qualities that made them great, arm, accuracy, mental toughness, ability to read defenses, leadership skills, comebacks when the games seemed out of reach to win.championships, and i dont mean that it has to be superbowls , you cant say one is better then the other they all had these great skills, but if you had to have a argument then i would say roger because he did all these things in his thirties, he did not have his early twenties as the others had, if he did he would to me be the best ever cause imagine double or triple all he did with a full stay in the N.F.L., wow the accolades would still be talked about, and the rules in which he played in were much more tougher to play in then today, I remember they would hit him on the head purposley to put him out of games, now if they did that today they would go to jail the way they hit roger, so that is the truth man, roger was the best, four passing titles, 5 super bowls and if he would of played in the first one we would of won, he was the captain comeback before any one else was, if roger would of played when he could have in his twenties we would of beaten Geenbay for the title games, and if he would of stayed we would not be talking about the catch by dwight clark, or the lost games against phil, and washington the next 2 championship games ,but everything happens for a reason, thats the way god planned it for him, so with that said he is truly the best ever

Posted by john pupparo @ 7:41 AM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

ROGER STAUBACH (Dallas, 1969-79)
Best season (1971): 126 for 211 (59.7%), 1,882 yards, 8.9 YPA, 15 TD, 4 INT, 104.8 passer rating
Career: 1,685 for 2,958 (57.0%), 22,700 yards, 7.7 YPA, 153 TD, 109 INT, 83.4 passer rating
Championships: 1971, 1977
Overview: Roger the Dodger did not become a fulltime NFL quarterback until the 1971 season – at age 29! One wonders what he might have done had he not spent five years in the service after his Heisman-winning 1963 season at Navy and two years sitting behind Craig Morton in Dallas.

Finally given a chance, he quickly proved to be a player for the ages. He took a Dallas club that “couldn’t win the big game” (five crushing playoff losses in five straight seasons, including three in NFL championship games or the Super Bowl) and turned it into a champion and “America’s Team” in his first full year at the helm.

In that 1971 season he played something of a caretaker role, attempting just 211 passes for 1,882 yards, but he tossed 15 TDs to just 4 INTs, averaged an astounding 8.9 YPA and posted a passer rating of 104.8, the second highest of the Dead Ball Era. It’s a truly remarkable number considering the season in which he did it. The league-wide passer rating in 1971 was just 62.2 – the second-lowest league-wide rating since 1956. Staubach shattered the standards of the era in his first full year playing NFL football – or football of any kind since 1963.

He also ended the 1971 season with an MVP performance in Super Bowl VI (a dominating 24-3 win over the Dolphins, who would not lose again until 1973) while placing himself high up on the pigskin pantheon of heroes who have defined America’s Team.

Staubach wasn’t quite done: he added passer-rating titles in 1973, 1978 and 1979, and another Super Bowl title in 1977. He’s one Jackie Smith dropped pass away from a third championship ring – in a game which might have earned Staubach and the Cowboys, not the Steelers, the title of team of the decade in the 1970s.

He also was a great scrambler and ballcarrier who rushed for 20 scores and 2,264 yards on 410 attempts. Most impressive: he played all but two years of his career in the depths of the Dead Ball Era, yet still racked up a career passer rating of 83.4 – No. 1 all time among pre-1980 quarterbacks.

Not bad for a guy who spent five years in the Navy during Vietnam.

Posted by john pupparo @ 7:44 AM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

ROGER STAUBACH (Dallas, 1969-79)
Best season (1971): 126 for 211 (59.7%), 1,882 yards, 8.9 YPA, 15 TD, 4 INT, 104.8 passer rating
Career: 1,685 for 2,958 (57.0%), 22,700 yards, 7.7 YPA, 153 TD, 109 INT, 83.4 passer rating
Championships: 1971, 1977
Overview: Roger the Dodger did not become a fulltime NFL quarterback until the 1971 season – at age 29! One wonders what he might have done had he not spent five years in the service after his Heisman-winning 1963 season at Navy and two years sitting behind Craig Morton in Dallas.

Finally given a chance, he quickly proved to be a player for the ages. He took a Dallas club that “couldn’t win the big game” (five crushing playoff losses in five straight seasons, including three in NFL championship games or the Super Bowl) and turned it into a champion and “America’s Team” in his first full year at the helm.

In that 1971 season he played something of a caretaker role, attempting just 211 passes for 1,882 yards, but he tossed 15 TDs to just 4 INTs, averaged an astounding 8.9 YPA and posted a passer rating of 104.8, the second highest of the Dead Ball Era. It’s a truly remarkable number considering the season in which he did it. The league-wide passer rating in 1971 was just 62.2 – the second-lowest league-wide rating since 1956. Staubach shattered the standards of the era in his first full year playing NFL football – or football of any kind since 1963.

He also ended the 1971 season with an MVP performance in Super Bowl VI (a dominating 24-3 win over the Dolphins, who would not lose again until 1973) while placing himself high up on the pigskin pantheon of heroes who have defined America’s Team.

Staubach wasn’t quite done: he added passer-rating titles in 1973, 1978 and 1979, and another Super Bowl title in 1977. He’s one Jackie Smith dropped pass away from a third championship ring – in a game which might have earned Staubach and the Cowboys, not the Steelers, the title of team of the decade in the 1970s.

He also was a great scrambler and ballcarrier who rushed for 20 scores and 2,264 yards on 410 attempts. Most impressive: he played all but two years of his career in the depths of the Dead Ball Era, yet still racked up a career passer rating of 83.4 – No. 1 all time among pre-1980 quarterbacks.

Not bad for a guy who spent five years in the Navy during Vietnam.

Posted by john pupparo @ 7:48 AM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

Bart starr should be up there also. BART STARR (Green Bay, 1956-71)
Best season (1966): 156 for 251 (62.2%), 2,257 yards, 9.0 YPA, 14 TD, 3 INT, 105.0 passer rating
Career: 1,808 for 3,149 (57.4%), 24,718 yards, 7.8 YPA, 152 TD, 138 INT, 80.5 passer rating
Championships: 1961, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1967
Overview: That’s right. Bart Starr. The greatest quarterback in the history of the game.

Sit down and take notes:

History has done a grave disservice to the legacy of Starr, the 17th-round draft pick out of pre-Bear Bryant Alabama who turned into the most clutch and most cruelly efficient passing assassin of his or any other generation.

History remembers Starr’s legendary coach, and the bevy of Hall of Fame talent that surrounded him. It forgets that Starr was Lombardi’s second in command, a tremendous big-game performer, and that the Packers of the 1960s would have been just another team without the prolific Starr as their beloved on-field leader. Instead, they won five NFL championships, with Starr at the helm of every single one of those title teams, while he crafted an NFL-record 9-1 postseason mark. The rings say it all: Starr is the only quarterback in history who has one for every finger on his throwing hand.

And even if you listen to teammates today, they make it pretty clear that they would have fallen on a grenade for Starr. Leadership is an elemental piece of quarterbacking – probably more important than gaudy passing stats. And that love his teammates had for their field general is an incredible sign of his leadership.

But forget, for a moment, the team accomplishments and the “intangibles” of leadership.

If you want to talk passing and statistics, we’ll put Starr up against anybody. Anybody.

He led the NFL in passer rating five times. Johnny Unitas led the league in passer rating just twice. Ditto Joe Montana. Only Steve Young surpassed Starr’s mark (six).

And, lest we forget, Starr was the best postseason passer in NFL history, as evidenced by his record 104.8 playoff passer rating and 1.41 percent interception rate, also a postseason record (CHFF readers are well aware of the importance of not throwing picks in the playoffs). Starr played in an era when 80 was a decent passer rating. Yet he still performed more efficiently in the playoffs than folks such as Montana, Brady, Manning, Marino, Young and … well, anybody, ever.

There’s a cause and effect here, folks: NFL’s greatest dynasty, only winners of three-straight title games, and a record 9-1 postseason mark. And there, underlying it all, is Starr with his postseason passing records. The two are intricately intertwined.

History also remembers Starr’s Packers as a great running team, and that’s certainly true of their earlier years. But the truth is that they typically passed the ball more effectively than they ran it, especially during their run of three straight, when they were a below-average running team.

In their 1965 championship season, the Packers were 11th in the 14-team league with an average of 3.4 yards per rushing attempt. They were second in the league, with an average of 8.2 yards per passing attempt.

In their 1966 championship season, the Packers were 14th in the 15-team league, with an average of 3.5 yards per rushing attempt. They were first in the league, with an average of 8.9 yards per passing attempt.

In their 1967 championship season, the Packers were 4th in the 16-team league, with an average of 4.0 yards per rushing attempt. They were first in the league, with an average of 8.3 yards per passing attempt (Starr himself that season averaged 8.7 YPA).

Starr averaged a remarkable 7.85 YPA over the course of his entire career, the 8th-best mark in history, and better than that of a slate of quarterbacks who are generally regarded as the best passers in history, including Dan Marino (7.37), Joe Montana (7.52), Roger Staubach (7.67), Dan Fouts (7.68), Sonny Jurgensen (7.56), Fran Tarkenton (7.27), Y.A. Tittle (7.52), Terry Bradshaw (7.17) and Joe Namath (7.35).

Six times in the 1960s, Starr surpassed 8.2 YPA for a season. To put that into context, Peyton Manning has surpassed 8.2 YPA just twice in his brilliant 10-year career.

And, if you want drama, don’t forget that Starr scored the winning TD in the Ice Bowl, probably the most famous game in NFL history. Sure, Montana led his team 92 yards for the game-winning score in Super Bowl XXIII. But he did it on a 68-degree night in Miami. Turn down the thermostat by 86 degrees (it was 18-below in the fourth quarter of the Ice Bowl) and you begin to approximate the conditions under which the greatest quarterback in NFL history operated during his greatest moment in the sport’s greatest game.

And Starr was brilliant on that drive, in the decisive moments of the sport’s most famous game: he completed 5 of 5 passes in ball-busting cold, and then called a run play for the winning score. But instead of handing it off, he decided in his mind, without telling his teammates, that he was going to punch it in himself. It was only fitting: the game’s greatest signal-caller taking matters into his own hands in the sport’s signature moment.

To cap his career achievements, Starr earned MVP honors in the first two Super Bowls after shredding the best the AFL could throw his way for 452 yards on 47 passing attempts (9.6 YPA). Among those victims were the 1967 Raiders, perhaps the AFL's greatest single team. He posted a combined 106.0 passer rating in those two games. If you think it was no small feat to beat up on "upstart" AFL teams, just look at how NFL quarterbacks fared in Super Bowls III and IV. (Here's a hint: they were embarrassed.)

When it comes to a combination of leadership, victories, big-game performances and statistical supremacy nobody – NOBODY – put together a more total package than Bart Starr, the greatest quarterback in NFL history.

Posted by garbeau @ 9:15 AM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

it's kind of insulting, but to the list itself. it seems it's more skewed to career numbers than results. of the modern qb's, #'s 4 and 10 (marino/fouts) 'rung it up' but never hoisted a trophy. and unitas is way too high. graham gets a pass because he essentially defined the role of a modern quarterback and did win several nfl championships.

here is my top 10

1. montana
2. elway
3. unitas
4. bradshaw
5. aikman
6. brady (but will likely finish higher)
7. marino (ditto...'specially if he wins another 'bowl' or two)
8. manning
9. staubach
10. favre

with graham, starr and tarkington finishing just out of the top 10

Posted by shane @ 10:30 PM Thu, Jan 31, 2008

If Montana had had a better arm then that pass he was trying to throw away would have gone out of the endzone instead of being caught by Clark. The Cowboys would have won another super bowl and Montana's name wouldn't be anywhere near the list of greatest quarterbacks.

Posted by Brian Dog @ 11:08 AM Thu, Feb 14, 2008

Kurt Warner is obviously one of the top all time QBs. Better than Aikman, who never threw for 30 TDs in a season. Better than Staubach, who couldn't get the game tied with the Steelers. Better than any Cowboy QBs, really. Shoot! And a small tidbit on Romo...he'll never win the big game. Those Cowboy championships were built with the O-line. You had the best O-line in the history of O-lines. That's why E. Smith is the most over-rated back in history!