SJ, settle a debate for me. Montana or Brady?

Tom Brady was not even on the field for the winning points for any of the Super Bowl wins. And yes, he was a miracle catch away from four, but he was also an average kicker away from maybe winning just one. Now, obviously Brady deserves credit for moving the Pats into position for Vinatieri to do his work. But when you think of Brady, what's the first thing that pops into your mind?

Now ask yourself the same question about Montana.

 

Probably, but Vinatieri's clutch field goals were better bets than Norwood's miss. The Bills should have been more aggressive trying to get him closer. That was definitely at the fringes of his range.

 

Brady.

 

What if Neil O'Donnell doesn't shit himself in Super Bowl XXX and Aikman ends up with one less ring? Wasn't Joe Montana nearly intercepted the play before his game-winning touchdown pass to John Taylor against the Bengals?

You can play the what-if game all you like, but I don't think it is fair to any of the players involved if you do.

 

kudos on bringing kelly into the conversation. like montana and young and aikman and brady, he's as good as any qb the last 25 years. by the 4th super bowl, how could you *not* be rooting for the bills to get the ring just once? that 4-year stretch is bizarre.

elway won back to back when most guys his age are playing golf. i'm almost inclined to say elway and montana are interchangeable. 2 minutes and 75 yards to go trailing by 4? elway, baby. (you can insert montana's name there, too).

marino?

 

I haven't read this thread, so I may be missing something, but are you for real? Moss is a LOCK to be in the HOF.

 

When it comes to bringing a team back late, Elway is right there with Montana and anybody else you could mention. But overall, Montana was far more consistent. Maybe that was because he played on better teams, especially in the late '80s, but you still have to give guys credit for what they actually did.

Brady is easier to compare to Montana because they are similar in their styles of play. Montana and Elway were very different quarterbacks. Montana would just pick you apart all day. Elway's game wasn't as pretty. He had his rough stretches, but he would find a way when it mattered most.

 

I don't know if I would say Elway found a way when it mattered most all the time, unless you're just talking about two-minute offense. Elway had a couple of his worst games in Super Bowls.

Having said that, the Montana-Elway Monday Night duel in 1994 was one of the most memorable games I had ever watched. Man, it was something else watching those two go back and forth in the fourth quarter.

 

So Brady's legacy suffers b/c he hasn't thrown a game-winning TD pass in the last minute of a Super Bowl...only led two game-winning drives? Not sure I understand that one.

And when I think of Brady, I think of the ruthless effectiveness of the 50-TD season...or of him putting his hands on his head and shaking it in wonderment as he stands at the podium after the 2002 Super Bowl, and I wonder where that happy-go-lucky guy went, 'cause it sure seems as if he's gone and never coming back. Either image still puts him on the level just below Montana, and again, it's not a giant gap at all between the two.