Greatest quarterback you have seen?

[steve B]

Just like baseball, I think it's hard to compare players from one period of time to another especially as the game has changed since I started watching in 72-3. There were a lots of great QBs who won't have the numbers of todays guys because of some changes. Guys that played in the 70's didn't have the protection they have today, and the recievers get more protection too. Teams also were more focused on the running game so some situations where todays teams pass were almost always a run.

From the 70's guys
Staubach, Tarkenton, Bradshaw, Kilmer. (A pretty mobile guy for the time, and took a lot of hits since the sliding thing wasn't part of the game. )

80's- 90's

Elway, Farve, Marino, Montana.

00's

There's so many really great quarterbacks now. I think we down play that aspect of it since it's current.

Manning, Rodgers, Brady, Romo, Rivers, ........There were 11 with 4000yards + and Flacco was just under.

For perspective, Tarkenton was only over 3000 twice, Montana was over 3000 8 times, but only came near 4000 once. Staubach twice, his last two years. Bradshaw twice........Now there's so many over 3000 yards it's almost a requirement.

For best I've seen?
Probably Montana, He was pretty amazing and always seemed to make the right play. I'd have to put Elway a close second. Just so many times pulling the game out when it would seem lost.

More modern? Tough to say, most of todays greats are more products of a system than individually great. Manning would be up there, but had trouble in big games. Brady was amazing when given a fantastic group of recievers, and is still great, but his success is more a result of the teams system where they use a lot of hard to defend passes and a crowd of good but not necessarily great recievers (Montana mostly passed to Rice, Brady had three recievers over 900 yards this year. ) I'm hard pressed to think of a QB now that plays for a team that's ambivalent about a great passing game and puts up good numbers on talent alone. Not that todays guys don't have talent, just that it's used much better by nearly every team.

Steve B

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by steve B

Just like baseball, I think it's hard to compare players from one period of time to another especially as the game has changed since I started watching in 72-3.

Odd, it wasn't hard for me. I based my opinion on what I saw, which is all I was asking. When you see a quarterback dodging defenders and making a throw, it looks pretty much today the way it did in 1972.

[nolemmings]

Unitas.

[bigtrain]

I have been watching NFL (and AFL) football for over 50 years. For me the discussion begins and ends with Joe Montana.

[bbcard1]

I am clearly not so out of touch as to represent him as one of the greatest of all time, but had it not been for injuries he might have been. Chad Pennington had a pop-gun arm but a head for the game like very few others. I watched him from the time he was a skinny freshman who was forced into duty when three quarterbacks in front of him were injured. As a pro, I think him taking the Dolphins to the playoffs after the Jets unceremoniously dumped him for Farve was one of the better FUs in pro football history. Have met him on numerous occasions and he is a thoroughly admirable human being.

[D.P.Johnson]

Montana hands-down...The way he would walk up to the line of scrimmage while analyzing the defense and then call an audible was absolute genius...

[D. Bergin]

No, he never won a Super Bowl, but the best pure QB I ever saw was Marino. Never had a ton to work with, never paired with an elite level RB or running game that I can recall and his best receivers were tiny men. Despite this, he put up some mind boggling numbers in an era when the defensive rules were much different then they are now.

All respect to anybody who says Montana, Brady, Manning, Unitas, Steve Young.........as I can see those arguments to.

[Runscott]

Marino in his prime was about as good as anyone.

My favorites to watch were Staubach and Tarkenton. Montana and Marino were almost too perfect to be enjoyable.

[CMIZ5290]

Originally Posted by D. Bergin

No, he never won a Super Bowl, but the best pure QB I ever saw was Marino. Never had a ton to work with, never paired with an elite level RB or running game that I can recall and his best receivers were tiny men. Despite this, he put up some mind boggling numbers in an era when the defensive rules were much different then they are now.

All respect to anybody who says Montana, Brady, Manning, Unitas, Steve Young.........as I can see those arguments to.

This too is a great point by Dave. As far as a pure passer, hard to go against Marino....

[CMIZ5290]

Originally Posted by D.P.Johnson

Montana hands-down...The way he would walk up to the line of scrimmage while analyzing the defense and then call an audible was absolute genius...

Plus 1 big time. 4 for 4 in Super Bowls, I'll take this guy...

[HappyJack41]

Nobody and I mean NOBODY will ever touch Joe Cool. Some say "well yeah but Brady had to do it in the salary cap area!".....who gives a $hit!, Montana actually had to play against REAL defenses who were actually allowed to play defense and weren't neutered so that the offense always has the advantage as it has been in this league for 15 years now.

Brady has never and will never know what it's like to play against defenses allowed to head hunt on him or jam the living crap out of his receivers on every single play all the way up the field. If he did, he wouldn't have 3 Super Bowls with a 4th trophy gift wrapped last night. And he wouldn't have the stats that he's been able to put up while being pampered by this league for his entire career (ESPECIALLY for the last 8 years under Kraft's butt buddy GODell)

[EvilKing00]

top 6 in order IMO - taking into account stats, teams the played for, over all talent and EVERYTHING in general


Manning
Elway
marino
montana
Johnny u
brady

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by HappyJack41

Nobody and I mean NOBODY will ever touch Joe Cool. Some say "well yeah but Brady had to do it in the salary cap area!".....who gives a $hit!,

Well, you should, because it's a valid point. Keeping a great team together today is much more difficult than it was in Montana's day.

Think Bradshaw wins four Super Bowls in the salary cap era? No way. He doesn't have Swann, Stallworth, Franco Harris, that offensive line, and a defense with Mean Joe Green, Jack Ham, Jack Lambert, L.C. Greenwood, etc in the cap era. Other teams start offering money the Steelers can't compete with. The team falls apart.

The same thing would have happened to Montana. Rice was otherworldly. As I said before, the second best receiver to ever play the game, and the greatest in modern football. The Niners would have kept Montana and Rice. That means they lose the complimentary pieces like Tom Rathman, Roger Craig, John Taylor, etc. They don't keep that offense together. Montana is having to get used to new young guys much more often. I'm not saying that Montana isn't able to develop great chemistry with those new receivers, but it would take a while.