Posted on 02/06/2005 5:34:03 AM PST by foreverfree
On the Baltimore Sun mb, someone suggested Joe Namath as overrated because of SB III (sour grapes maybe?). Someone else on that thread suggested Bradshaw as overrated.
Well, on this Super Sunday, I thought I'd start a thread for those in the know about overrated/underrated pro QBs past and present, what with two QBs entering Canton yesterday. I'm not necessarily in the know (I work) so I won't be chiming in too much if at all. Anyway, fire away!
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The Patriot offense did what they had to do to stop Manning ... keep him off the field. To that end New England controlled the ball 36 plus minutes in the Colts game. I believe that was a record for NFL playoff game. The Patriots watched the Broncos try the same game plan against Manning the previous week, but failed miserably. The Broncos showed up in the third quarter ... but the hole they dug in the first half was way to deep.
People forget that Bradshaw was the last NFL QB to call his own plays in the huddle. No headset like today, no shuttling guards or signals from the sidelines like every other team used then. He called them all in the huddle.
In his first couple of years, that caused many disasters, but once he learned to read defenses, he was pretty much unstoppable when he wanted to pass. He could release as fast as Namith, he could run maybe not as good as Vick, but pretty damn good, and he could throw the ball 50 yards on a line. No one in the game then, with the possible exception of Dan Foust had an arm as strong as Bradshaw.
He also played a different game that most other QBs at the time. I think he lead the league most every year in avg. yards per attempt because he did put the ball down field, with accuracy. He didn't do a bunch of little dump passes like his contemporaries which made their stats look better than his. Bradshaw's overall stats don't look that impressive as the others (just like Swan's & Stallworth's don't) because the Steelers had very balanced attack. The didn't need to throw 30 times for 400 yards in a game because just like this year, they could pretty much run and control the clock whenever they wanted. But that deep threat was always there and he didn't hesitate to use it regardless of down and distance. The defense could never stack up to stop the run because Bradshaw was just as likely to put the ball 50 yards down field on a 3rd and 1 as he was the hand it off. They just never knew what he might do.
I think it could be safely said that no one who played defense against Bradshaw considered him over rated.
..or maybe as a bengals fan I'm just bitter. LOL!
The Viking Defense showed this year that they could play well, they just didn't do it consistently enough to win. Even Payton Manning has bad games, when they outweigh the good games (ala Brett Favre), they are acceptable.
What about...
Francis Asbury Tarkenton. . .Almost instant star with four TD passes, first game, 1961. . .Moved to New York (1967), back to Vikings (1972) in stunning trades. . .At retirement led lifetime passers in attempts (6,467), completions (3,686), yards (47,003), touchdowns (342). . .Exciting, elusive scrambler. . . Rushed for 3,674 yards, 32 TDs. . .Led Vikings to three Super Bowls. . .Two-time All-NFL. . .Pro Bowl selection nine times. . . Born February 3, 1940, in Richmond, Virginia.
Not true. Jerry Rice had amazing YAC (yards after catch) figures.
Ron Pawlus. According to those who knew, he was supposed to win two heisman's. Worst Q in the history of planet earth.
You've gone absolutely mad. Not only is Manning not over-rated, he might well be the best quarterback ever to lace 'em up in NFL history. Forget his stats for a moment--and they ARE amazing--4000+ yards in every year except in rookie season, in which he threw for 3700 yards, 30,000 yards for his career, lifetime completion percentage of well over 60%, TD/Int ratio of nearly 2/1, and a lifetime quarterback rating of 92--the throws that he makes are absolutely phenomenal. No one in recent history--not Elway, not Young, not Montana--makes the kind of throws that he does. The only person that comes close to making the kind of throws that Manning makes is Brett Favre, and even he hasn't done it in a few years.
Yeah, he hasn't been to the Super Bowl, but that doesn't mean he's overrated as a player or not great. Barry Bonds hasn't even been to the World Series--does that mean he isn't a great player? Or Dan Marino--he never won the big game, but he's a great quarterback. To say Manning is overrated because he hasn't yet been to the Superbowl is just silly--silly.
There are many fair criticisms being leveled at Vick on this thread, but that is not one of them.
Vick does not sideline himself, the coaches make that call. Vick played in every game this season except for the last two, like Mcnabb. In 2002, he missed one game due to a separated throwing shoulder, and played with the injury the rest of the season. In 2003, he broke his leg, and missed nine games.
Do tell, when has Vick missed a regular season game for a minor injury?
I saw Manning, on 4th and 1 wave the punt team back to the sidelines, call a play and convert a 15 yard pass. Most QB's today don't have that kind of leadership or confidence.
Heh. That was just Beano Cook--but don't forget, he was highly recruited when he came to ND and the guy threw four TD passes in his first game in an Irish uniform. Regretfully for him, that might have been the worst thing to ever happen to him: there was no way to live up to the hype after that.
Ron Powlus was a disappointment, but in fairness, though, Ron Powlus left Notre Dame with most of the passing records: not Paul Hornung, not Joe Theismann, not Montana and not Steve Beurelin.
"But remember, when Rush Limbaugh made his supposedly "racist" remark about McNabb being overrated, McNabb hadn't been playing up to expectations..."
Rush has also stated recently that McNabb is playing much better now than when made the comment.
it's true that the defense has played well this year - that doesn't mean McNabb hasn't.
neither side of the ball can go 15-3 by itself (15-1 when playing starters). look at the ravens before they had any offensive weapons.
a statement like this just forfeits all credibility. in order to think he's bottom third, you've gotta be bottom third in brain activity, have an agenda, or both.
Who would you rather have if you owned a team? Manning or McNabb? I rest my case.
Anyone remember 1996 Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel?
I don't know if he was overrated, but he sure was a disappointment to the New Orleans Saints.
Being a Vols, Colts, and a Manning fan, I'll give the Pats credit. They've had Peyton's number the last two years (about the only team that has). Peyton is a student of the game and will overcome. And yes, being strong on defense would make things a little easier on the Colts. As for QB's, always been a Johnny Unitas fan but Nameth was a great one also (watched Superbowl III).
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