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Reactions: Worst Super Bowl QBs Posted: Thursday January 18, 2001 4:08 PMUpdated: Thursday January 18, 2001 4:08 PM
You know the names ... Starr, Namath, Griese, Staubach, Bradshaw, Montana -- quarterbacks who set the standard for excellence on the NFL's biggest stage. But who is the worst QB to buckle up a chinstrap in a Super Bowl? CNNSI.com users overwhelmingly said Neil O'Donnell and Tony Banks. A sample of the responses we received follows: I'd have to say Trent Dilfer. I mean, he was inept in Tampa Bay, and even though he took over for Tony Banks, the Ravens offense is no better. He can't throw the ball down field with any efficiency, and he doesn't seem like a real leader on the field. And if the Ravens win the Super Bowl, he'll have solidified his place as the worst quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl. The Ravens won't win on the arm of Dilfer, they'll win with their punishing defense, a credit to their coordinator.
I can't believe that you included Stan Humphries in this category. Although not a great QB, he was a good one that, despite a lack of great talent on the offensive line (one that would eventually send him into retirement), produced very well. As for my opinion on the worst QB in history to start a Super Bowl, I say either Tony Eason or David Woodley. Both were quarterbacks with good physical tools but the first didn't have the heart and the latter the ability to read defenses to compete on the greatest stage in professional football thus setting up some horrible performances. Bottom line, the trip to the Super Bowl was for both the beginning of the end as it exposed them both.
One you may have forgotten Craig Morton -- seven interceptions in two games (starting for Dallas in SB 5, and Denver in SB 12). Ferragamo actually played very well against an aging Steeler defense. My pick is Woodley: didn't he only have four completions in the entire game?
Joe Kapp has to be the worst QB, hands down. He makes David Woodley, Stan Humphries and Trent Dilfer look good! This reject from the Canadian Football League (!) had the build of a linebacker and thought he could bulldoze through tackles. He was fearless and took some incredible hits. Look at old films and see how he passed -- frequently the ball would travel end over end. Pull up the stats. His QB rating would have to be one of the worst around. You ask, how did he get to the Super Bowl? Same way as Trent Dilfer this year. The Vikings were a powerful defensive team and Joe Kapp was just good enough to win.
Craig Morton of the Denver Broncos! In the 1978 Super Bowl (1977 season) against the Dallas Cowboys he went into that game already old, battered and bruised and left it in even worse shape. He almost single-handedly lost that game for them with his lack of range and mobility. When a guy named Norris Weese has to come in at QB to relieve you that says enough.
Roger Staubach. He holds the career all-time record for turnovers in the Super Bowl, lost two of them and choked in the clutch.
Jim Kelly. He had FOUR opportunities to win the big one and failed all four times. He didn't finish most of the games, he was usually too busy getting knocked out and whiffing smelling salts. He's the king of stink.
I think that the worst QB ever to be in the Super Bowl will be decided on January 28, 2001. Is it Trent Dilfer or Kerry Collins? Both ran inconsistent offenses this year and if either teams offense scores more than 10 points in Super Bowl XXXV, the entire nation will be surprised. Collins and Dilfer, both consistent losers in the past, rode their defenses to the Super Bowl.
The worst QB to ever play in a Super Bowl has got to be Neil O'Donnell. This guy did it with mirrors all season, choked in the spotlight, got a big contract and turned out to be the bum a lot of us knew he would be all along.
Neil O'Donnell made Larry Brown look like a superstar in Super Bowl XXX. What happen to Larry Brown the next year? The Steelers win that game if O'Donnell is not the quarterback.
Tony Eason has to be the worst QB in Super Bowl history. Did he even complete a pass? I remember that Steve Grogan led them to their only touchdown. I would bet that Eason still has nightmares of Dent, McMichael, Hampton, Singletary, etc. coming in untouched. From watching that game, I remember the Bears' dominance and the Pats' purely being pathetic.
Tony Eason is easily the worst quarterback to have played in the Super Bowl. Not only that, but he is the worst quarterback to have played in New England. Honestly I think Hugh Millen was better than Eason. Eason was a walking injury. Having him on the team with Steve Grogan at the same time provided for the ultimate of ironies...on one hand you have Eason the wimpiest quarterback to have ever played the game, and then you have iron man Steve Grogan who personified the naked bootleg. I might weigh Stan Humphries in as next worst quarterback to have played in the Super Bowl, yes he was horrible, but to anyone who votes for Stan over Tony I implore you to watch film of both men. And if you have trouble finding film of Eason don't worry that is because he was always injured. Does anyone see a comparison between Eason and Chris Chandler?
Tie... Fran Tarkenton and Jim Kelly -- Great quarterbacks, however, to go to the big game as many times as both of these great players did and not win once has got to be tough!
How can Neil O'Donnell's name not be included for this dubious honor? After countless passes to Larry Brown of the Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX, it looked like he was auditioning for a job in Dallas for the next season.
I first thought that I could run with Stan Humphries, but how about Mark Rypien? He had one great year and than fell off the map.
I took a look at the voting so far and as usual people now nothing of the past. Although I don't think Joe Kapp is the worst QB to ever play in a Super Bowl the fact that got the fewest votes is astonishing. My opinion is that he is the second worst after Stan Humphries of San Diego in XXIX. Tony Eason played against arguably the best defense in NFL history and fared no worse against them than did Phil Simms and Dieter Brock in the playoffs that year (both of whose teams were shutout). Vince Ferragamo had pretty good game against a much better Steelers team and the Rams still had a chance to win late in the game. Additionally, the following year, Ferragamo threw for 30 TD's and made the Pro Bowl. Finally, Woodley, although not great in his Super Bowl appearance, did not play horribly either and he was at the time the youngest QB in Super Bowl history. Kapp and Humphries were horrible QB's who got the big game because their teams' defensive units. Call it tossup between those two.
This is an unfair question. Although it is a team sport, the quarterback position has biggest the impact on that team's performance. There is no "worst" quarterback for a team that actually made it to the Super Bowl. All of these people are incredibly skilled athletes that have been playing their sport for a minimum of 10 - 15 years. Just because a quarterback's team gets roped, or they throw three picks doesn't mean they can't play the position. Your question should be "who had the worst performance by a quarterback in a Super Bowl." Or better yet, stop being so morbid.
I'm very upset to see Vince Ferragamo in your list of superest whipping boys. I remember that Super Bowl game against the Steelers quite well. That contest was still in doubt very late into the fourth quarter with Pittsburgh going up two scores for the first and only time in that game. I'm a die-hard Denver fan, but may I remind you that John Elway and Jim Kelly combined for seven Super losses in their careers. Why aren't their names on you list of chumpions?
I am originally from Illinois and I remember watching Tony Eason be one of the most pitiful excuses for a quarterback in University of Illinois history (and that is pretty bad when you think of the likes of Jack Trudeau and Jeff George). Considering it was a fluke that the Patriots even made the Super Bowl that year and the fact that the regular season STARTER was someone as bad as Steve Grogan (who played much better injured than Tony Eason played healthy), I can not honestly see anyone voting for anyone else but Eason. His final numbers of that Super Bowl reflect his whole football career: 0 completions for 0 yards in six attempts. PATHETIC!
David Woodley. Didn't complete one pass in the second half of the Super Bowl against the Redskins when the game was still up for grabs.
You have mentioned some one-time wonders in the poll, but what about the early Elway games? Fran Tarkenton wasn't much better in his games. Craig Morton at Denver, Ron Jaworski was marginal at best on that given day! Not all games are as exciting as the Green Bay-Denver game. Favre lost, but both QB's were great. I vote for Tarkenton as the worst by number of bad defeats! And this is my top five list.
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