vcczar Posted September 8, 2022 Author Share Posted September 8, 2022 #73: Frank Filchock Primary team: Washington Redskins Born in Pennsylvania College: Indiana 2nd round pick in 1938 2x top-three in TD% and QB Rating, including leading the league in each once Twice led the league in TD passes Led the league once in Comp% and in AYA Missed 1942 and 1943 to fight in WWII Played both HB and QB when the HB also passed the ball regularly. Also played KR, PR, and DB. Signed to backup future Hall of Famer Sammy Baugh. Despite backing up Baugh, who he was alternating passing with, he was the top passer in the league in 1939. After two years at war, Filchock returned to start for the Redskins and was arguably the top QB in his return season. After 1945, he decline and was out of the NFL at the end of 1946. He joined the Canadian Football League as a player-coach. After one more NFL season in 1950 as a backup, he returned to player-coach in Canada until the end of 1953. Filchock was arguably the best QB in the league for two seasons in his career; however, he could never escape the shadow of Sammy Baugh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 8, 2022 Author Share Posted September 8, 2022 #72: Tommy Thompson Primary team: Philadelphia Eagles Born in Kansas College: Tulsa Undrafted in 1940 Blind in one eye Led the Eagles to two Championship wins Twice led the league in QB Rating Thrice led the league in TD% One led the league in TD passes WWII Vet Also played DB, KR, and PR. This one-eyed QB is one of the most underrated QBs in history. Imagine what he could have done with two eyes! Undrafted rookie who was picked up by the Steelers for a year, and then sent to the Eagles. Joined the war in WWII for two years. His career didn't really take off until he was about 31 years old. After winning the championship in 1948 and 1949, he had one subpar season and then retired. Three years later he came out of retirement to play part of a season in the Canadian Football League. Thompson's best season saw him with a 98.4 QB Rating when good QBs struggled to get a rating of 70 since interceptions were so common. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 9, 2022 Author Share Posted September 9, 2022 #71: Billy Wade Primary team: Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Rams Born in Nashville, TN College: Vanderbilt 1st overall pick in 1952 Won the Championship with the Bears in 1963 Twice top three in low INT% At various times led the league once in Comp%, yards, AYA, and QB Rating 1st overall pick despite being committed to military service until 1954, which says a lot about how good the Rams thought he would be. The Rams already had future Hall of Famer Norm Van Brocklin as their starting QB, so the pick seemed unnecessary. Even after two years in service, Wade backed up Van Brocklin. It wasn't until 1958 that Wade was the starting QB but the team lost so frequently that Wade demanded a trade and was granted a trade. Wade makes this list primarily for his output as a Bear, although he had some statistically prominent seasons as a Ram. The Wade-led Bears were on of the best teams of the early 1960s. He won the 1963 Championship games with two rushing TDs, the only TDs the Bears got in that game. It was enough. He retired after the 1966 season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share Posted September 10, 2022 #70: Steve Bartkowski Primary team: Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Rams Born in Des Moines, Iowa College: California 1st overall pick in 1975 Three seasons in the top three in Comp%, including once leading the league Two seasons in the top three in TD% Once led the league in TDs Once led the league in Low INT% Once led the league in QB Rating Today he's a bit obscure to everyone but Falcons fans and NFL history fanatics. Prior to Matt Ryan, he was the greatest Falcons QB in history. He played on some terrible Falcons teams, which really restricted his success, but he was statistically efficient regardless. He only saw two winning season, but in one of these seasons, he got 12 wins and was in the running for MVP. He was the face of the Falcons for over a decade leading a host of lost cause teams but proving to be one of the most statistically productive QBs despite this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share Posted September 10, 2022 #69: Daunte Culpepper Primary team: Minnesota Vikings Born in Florida College: Central Florida 11th overall pick in 1999 Three times was in the top 3 in Comp% Twice in the top three for QB Rating Once led the league in passing yards Once led the league in TDs Once led the league in TD% 34 career rushing TDs, including a 10 rushing TD season Culpepper was a massive QB -- 6'4" 260 lbs--yet, he was one of the top rushing QBs until his major injury. He sat out his rookie season, but his second season was MVP-calibre as he led the league in TDs and went on to win 11 games. After two mediocre seasons, he had two great seasons again, including a 110.0+ rating season in which he threw 39 TDs and 4,700+ yards. Following this season, he had a severe injury and was never the same. By the age of 28, when most QBs start warming up, Culpepper was on the decline. He was now 260 lbs and no longer mobile. His final five seasons saw him throw 20 TDs to 32 INTs for four teams. He retired from the NFL at the end of 2009 and joined the short-lived United Football League (UFL), where he played alright. In 2011, the Chiefs considered signing him as a backup, but declined. In all, Culpepper was a deadly QB pre-injury. He scored both in the air and on the ground. His only serious flaw in his younger days was that he fumbled a lot, twice leading the league in fumbles. Culpeppers career is rather stricly divided between 5 good-to-great years and 5 bad-to-terrible years with a severe injury dividing the two periods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pilight Posted September 10, 2022 Share Posted September 10, 2022 Culpepper's career is more properly divided into "years with Randy Moss" and "years without Randy Moss". He was a QB made by a receiver more than any in league history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share Posted September 10, 2022 31 minutes ago, pilight said: Culpepper's career is more properly divided into "years with Randy Moss" and "years without Randy Moss". He was a QB made by a receiver more than any in league history. That probably played a part for sure, but I think it had more to do with a catastrophic knee injury that made him more or less immobile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share Posted September 10, 2022 #68: Mark Rypien Primary team: Washington Redskins Born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada College: Washington State 6th Round Pick in 1986. Won a Super Bowl and was SB MVP. Had also won a SB ring as an injured backup QB, but that doesn't apply to his ranking. Once top three in TD%, AYA, and Rating. A rather unusual career. He was fairly old for a rookie QB (24) when he was drafted. On top of this he missed his first two seasons to injuries. He took the starting job when Doug Williams was injured and was rather solid for 5 years in this role, never having a losing season. His best season was in 1991 when he led his team to a 14-2 record and was in the MVP running. He capped this season with a SB MVP performance. Starting in 1993, he regressed and operated as a backup until he retired at about age 35 in 1997. He stayed retired for three years untl he was signed by the Colts as a backup, and then retired again after he was cut by the Seahawks before the start of the 2002 season. He came out of retirement in 2006 to play one game in an indoor football league. Rypien retired with a solid 47-31 record at QB. His nephew is backup QB Brett Rypien, who currently plays for the Broncos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 11, 2022 Author Share Posted September 11, 2022 #67: Parker Hall Primary team: Cleveland Rams Born in Mississippi College: Mississippi 3rd overall pick in 1939 1x MVP 1x 1st Team All Pro Once led the league in Comp%, TX%, Low INT%, WWII vet Played positions that would now correspond with QB, RB, KR, PR, P, and DB. He's on this list primarily for his rookie season, when he was clearly the league's best player. In addition to being the best passer, he was also 5th in the league in rushing yards with 458 and the top punter. He played three more seasons with the Rams but was never quite as good as he was as a rookie. He missed three seasons to join WWII. After the war, he opted to join the San Francisco 49ers in the new AAFC which was the rival league to the NFL. He played for a year. The AAFC and the AFL are the only rival leagues whose stats count as NFL stats. Hall's career was short, but he was the dominant player for one season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 11, 2022 Author Share Posted September 11, 2022 #66: Nick Foles Primary team: Philadelphia Eagles Born in Austin, TX College: Arizona 3rd round pick in 2012 As a backup QB led the Eagles through the playoffs, winning the SB and the SB MVP Once led the league in TD%, AYA, and QB Rating. Possibly the Earl Morrall of the 21st century. That is a backup QB with occasional MVP performances and streaks of a Hall of Famer. Foles career is just strange. In his second season he threw 7 TDs in one game and for the season had 27 TDs to only 2 INTs with a 119.2 QB Rating for the Eagles, all the while leading them to an 8-2 record. He was benched midway next season and dumped by the Eagles. He spent the next two seasons backing up on two different teams. In 2017, Foles was signed by the Eagles again. When starting QB Carson Wentz was injured, Foles stepped in for the final games of the regular season and sailed through the playoffs and scored an upset victory in the SB and winning the SB MVP. In the playoffs, he had a 115 rating and 6 TDs to only 1 INT. The next season, he started only five games, going 4-1. He then signed with Jacksonville in 2019 to be the starter, but he was benched after an 0-4 start. He hasn't been a regular starter since then. If Foles retires, he'll be a Philadelphia legend, but should he somehow manage to come and win another SB, or even go to the SB, he will be in the argument for the best backup QB of all-time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 12, 2022 Author Share Posted September 12, 2022 #65: Dave Krieg Primary team: Seattle Seahawks Born in Wisconsin College: Milton, which doesn't exist anymore. Undrafted rookie in 1980 3x led the league in TD% 2x led the league in Comp%, AYA, and QB Rating, including leading the league in Comp% once. Krieg was one of the top QBs when I started watching football, and appeared to be a peer of Warren Moon, Jim Kelly, and Boomer Esiason, John Elway, Dan Marino, although not of Joe Montana, who seemed to have had superpowers. Krieg's career is kind of miraculous. He was undrafted from a college that doesn't exist anymore and somehow made the roster as a 3rd string QB. Part of the issue is that he had extremely small hands for a QB, which made him extremely fumble prone (he led the league in fumbles twice and is 3rd all time overall in fumbles. After three years as a backup, Krieg took over starting duties from Jim Zorn, who had been the first Seahawks QB, and had started for 8 years. Krieg was instantly an upgrade, racking up 7 elite-to-near-elite seasons in a row. In fact, he never had a losing season until his 9th and final season as starter for the Seahawks. Following this season, he went to the Chiefs and won 10 games, but he never seemed quite the same for the rest of his career. He played 6 more seasons, but he was generally on terrible teams. He did throw 14 TDs to only 3 INTs on the Lions, which was probably his best late career season. The next year, he was on an atrocious Cardinals team and led the league with 21 interceptions (2nd time he led the league in INTs) and in getting sacked and in sack yards lost (2nd time he led the league in this). 1996 was his final season as a regular starter, a mediocre with the Bears. He finished his 18th and 19th seasons as a backup with the Titans. He attempted to play a 20th season, but while several coaches wanted him on the team, he was deemed too expensive for a 2nd or 3rd string QB. Krieg, in many ways, was kind of similar to Brett Favre during his elite seasons. He put up a lot of numbers and won games but was also prone to interceptions, sacks, and fumbles. His career arc is probably more like Warren Moon's, although I think Krieg was a more efficient QB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 12, 2022 Author Share Posted September 12, 2022 #64: Brad Johnson Primary team: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Born in Georgia College: Florida State 9th round pick in 1992, which means he wouldn't have been drafted in contemporary drafts. Won the Super Bowl for the Buccaneers 3x in top three in Low INT%, twice leading the league. 2x in top three for COMP% 1st QB to ever complete a TD pass to himself. During Johnson's career, I don't think it was fathonable that he would make this list. He always seemed like a backup who happened to be starter frequently. He also didn't look much like a QB. He looked more like a guy at a rundown, mostly empty, country bar drinking the most disgusting beer on the menu. In fact, I imagine he drank the beer as he sat on the sidelines in between possessions. Johnson was a definition of game manager. He rarely put up large numbers but he was quietly very efficient. So much so that he retired with an impressive 72-53 record. He barely played during his first four seasons and not at all for the first two. He emerged as a 28-year-old QB that no one had heard of. He didn't really prove himself until the Vikings lost him to the Redskins, where he had one great season in 1999. In 2002, now with the Buccaneers, he won the SB. In 2005, at age 37, he moved back to the Vikings and had one more good season, where he started about half the games and went 7-2. He finished his career as the backup QB of my Dallas Cowboys in 2007 and 2008, after which he retired aged 40. Johnson's career is unique in its stealth. He was effective but that QB that even hardcore NFL fans forgets exists. Nevertheless, he's proved himself worthy of being a top 100 QB of all time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 12, 2022 Author Share Posted September 12, 2022 #63: Lamar Jackson Primary team: Baltimore Ravens Born in Florida College: Louisville 32nd overall in 2018 1x MVP 1x 1st team All-Pro Led the league once in TDs and TD% Twice rushed for over 1,000 yards, including twice leading in yards average per carry. He's here and only 25 years old. He'll certainly soar up the list. His 2019 season is one of the best of all time. He had 36 passing TDs and a 113 rating as well as 1,200+ rushing yards and 7 rushing TDs. His 2021 season wasn't on par with his great 2019 and 2020 season, and 2022 will be the season in which we decide if defenses have figured him out or not. His performance in Week 1 of season 2022, seemed more like Jackson at his best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 13, 2022 Author Share Posted September 13, 2022 #62: Phil Simms Primary team: New York Giants Born in Kentucky College: Morehead St 7th overall pick in 1979 Won 2 SB rings, although for one of them he missed the playoffs due to injury. Won the SB MVP and holds the SB record for an 88% completion % in a SB Twice led the league in Low INT% Was the face of the Giants offense for a decade and a half. Quite solid and sometimes one of the best in the league. Had a great 95-64 record. However, he was frequently injured, starting all the games in a season for only 4 seasons. He missed all of 1982 and all but two games of 1983 with a knee injury. One of his best seasons was in 1993--his final season--when at age 38 he was in the MVP running. Four of his seasons he led the Giants to 11 or more wins, including one 14 win season. He did lead the league in fumbles once and in yards lost to sacks once, however. Two of his sons become NFL QBs, Chris Simms and Matt Simms, although neither stayed in the league long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 13, 2022 Author Share Posted September 13, 2022 #61: Benny Friedman Primary team: New York Giants & Brooklyn Dodgers Born in Cleveland, Ohio College: Michigan Pre-draft rookie in 1927 4x led league in passing TDs 4x led league in passing yards 4x 1st team All Pro The first true NFL passer. Should probably be much better ranked than this, but stats before 1932 are few. We do get the number of TDs that he passed for, which was 66. He held the record for passing yards and passing TDs at retirment, records which were not surpassed until the 1940s, even though he only played for 8 years. He was also a rare Jewish football player. He was actually a tailback when that position threw the ball as much, if not more than the QB. He also played on defense, kicked, and returned kicks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 13, 2022 Author Share Posted September 13, 2022 #60: John Hadl Primary team: San Diego Chargers Born in Kansas College: Kansas 10th overall pick in 1962 3x led league in passing yards 2x led league in TDs 1x led in TD% 1x led in Low INT% 1x Champion Hadl is kind of unknown today, but he was a dominant player during his 11 seasons with the Chargers. Unfortunately, these teams weren't always successful at winning games. Hadl's scored this most wins (12) during his one full season with the Rams. Hadle was three times in the running for MVP. Hadl could be erratic. For instance he once led the league in fumbles, once in getting sacked, and twice in getting intercepted, including a 32-INT season. His last four seasons are especially forgettable as he threw 21 TDs to 46 INTs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 13, 2022 Author Share Posted September 13, 2022 #59: Charlie Conerly Primary team: New York Giants Born in Mississippi College: Mississippi 13th round pick in 1945 Twice in the top three in league in Comp%, Low INT%, QB Rating, including leading the league in each once. 1x Champion Also a punter Drafted by the Redskins in 1945, but he didn't play a single game until 1948 with the NY Giants. His entire 14-year-career was spent with the Giants. He somehow didn't get named All Pro in 1959 when he earned an 8-1-1 record and threw for a 102 QB Rating when most good QBs were barely getting over a 70 rating. Overall, he led the Giants to a 57-31-1 record, which is quite impressive. No doubt there are some Giants fans who have lived to see Conerly, Simms, and Eli Manning at QB--all of whome played their entire careers with the Giants. It would be interested to see whom these fans think was best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 13, 2022 Author Share Posted September 13, 2022 #58: Cam Newton Primary team: Carolina Panthers Born in Georgia College: Auburn 1st overall pick in 2011 1x 1st team All Pro 1x MVP 2x seasons with 75%+ wins 1 SB appearance (lost) 1x led league in TD% 1x led league in yards per carry All-time leader in QB Rushing TDs w/ 75 Newton was good to great for about 8 seasons before a major injury. His passing skill never seemed to recover, while he still ran for 12 TDs in a season post-injury. I thought Newton would have an even more dominant career than he has when I first saw him. As a rookie, he threw 21 TDs and ran for 14 TDs for 35 total TDs! At 6'5" 245 lbs, defenses had a hard time tackling him. Duing his MVP season in 2015, he threw for 35 TDs and ran for 10 for a total of 45 TDs! His rapid decline is kind of hard to watch. In his final three seasons he has started 22 games, but he has only 12 passing TDs to 17 rushing TDs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 13, 2022 Author Share Posted September 13, 2022 #57: Philip Rivers Primary team: San Diego Chargers/LA Chargers Born in Alabama College: North Carolina St 4th overall pick in 2004 3x in the top three in QB Rating and AYA, leading the league 3x in AYA and 1x in QB Rating 2x in the top three in Comp%, leading the leage once 1x led league in passing yards 1x led league in TD% 1x led league in TDs A member of the Chargers of 16 seasons. For a long time he seemed like he was going to be the next Dan Marino. That is, a stat monster who would never win a SB. However, Rivers was a lot more error-prone than Marino. Rivers once led the league in fumbles, once in sacks lost to yards, and twice led the league in INTs. His team was best early in his career (including a 14 win season), but for a stretch of 8 seasons, Rivers-led teams underperformed. Two of his last three seasons, including one with the Colts, seemed promising. I was a little surprised he retired after 2020, considering he and the Colts played really well that year. Overall, it may seem strange that someone can throw 63,000+ yards and fall to #57, but he was less successful, more error-prone, and less efficient than many of those outranking him here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 14, 2022 Author Share Posted September 14, 2022 #56: Brian Sipe Primary team: Cleveland Browns Born in San Diego, California College: San Diego St 13th round pick in 1972 2x in top 3 in Low INT%, once leading the league 1x MVP 1x 1st Team All-Pro 1x Led league in TDs 1x Led league in QB Rating Didn't throw a pass until his 3rd season and wasn't the regular starter until his 5th season. One of the best QBs for at least three seasons, once winning the MVP and in the running for MVP another time. Had some outlier seasons. For instance, despite having had two seasons among the lowest in INT%, he twice led the league in INTs. Starting in 1981, he declined. 1983 was his last season in the NFL. He then joined the new USFL league for two seasons and put up above average numbers. Sipe was one of the best QBs in the league post-Unitas and before the great 1983 draft class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 14, 2022 Author Share Posted September 14, 2022 #55: Jim Plunkett Primary team: Oakland/LA Raiders Born in San Jose, California College: Stanford 1st overall pick in 1971 Led the Raiders to two SB victories, including once winning the SB MVP Rare Mexican-American and Native American NFL QB Plunkett is a good topic for NFL questions. Can a QB win 2 SBs and still be a bust as a 1st overall pick? Can a QB win 2 SBs, get a SB MVP, and still not make the Hall of Fame? Plunkett was never among the top three in any major passing category for any season. He started his career with the New England Patriots, who promptly traded him as he was proving to be a bust. With the Patriots, he posted seasons with appaulingly low comp%'s of under 50%, including one season with 39.1%! He led the league in INTs one year, and in another year, he threw 8 TDs to 25 INTs! He also flamed out for two seasons on the San Francisco 49ers and was then cut. The Raiders signed him in 1979 as a backup and by 1980, at age 33, he was the starter, winning the SB and the SB MVP that season. Despite putting up mediocre numbers all season, he had a 9-2 record as starter. In 1983, he had arguably his only statistically good season (20 TDs to 18 INTs and an 82.7 QB Rating), while going 10-3 as starter and winning another SB. The rest of his career was marred by injuries, and he missed his final season in 1987 with a season-long injury. Overall, the two SB victories, along with a SB MVP, are the only thing keeping him on this list. How he lasted in the NFL for 17 seasons is a mystery. He completed only 52.5% of his passes for his career with 164 TDs to 198 INTs with a 67.5 QB Rating. His numbers were much improved by a much better performance in his play from the age of 33 on. Had he quit football after flaming out with the Patriots and 49ers, he might be considered one of the greatest busts in NFL history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 14, 2022 Author Share Posted September 14, 2022 #54: Cecil Isbell Primary team: Green Bay Packers Born in Houston, Texas College: Purdue 7th overall pick in 1938 1x Champion, although wasn't the primary passer for that season. 2x passing yardage leader 2x TD pass leader 2x TD% leader 2x AYA leader 1x QB Rating leader Isbell's career is short, and his career as the primary passer is even shorter. He officially was the tailback (today's RB), but this was when this position often threw as much as the QB. He spent his first two seasons as the alternate passer to Arnie Herber, one of the best passers in the league. While he retired at the end of 1942 after 5 seasons to accept a coaching job at age 27, his record of 23 straight games with a passing TD stood until Unitas broke it in 1957. Like Herber, Isbell was greatly helped by WR Don Hutson, the first true WR, who was the Jerry Rice before Jerry Rice. Isbell, like many passers during his time, also played defense and punted. While he wasn't the primary passer during the 1939 Championship, he did throw a TD with one of his two passes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 14, 2022 Author Share Posted September 14, 2022 #53: Eli Manning Primary team: New York Giants Born in New Orleans, Louisiana College: Mississippi 1st Overall Pick in 2004 2X SB winner, winning the SB MVP both times. Part of the Manning QB dynasty, along with father Archie and brother Peyton. If Eli Manning makes the Hall of Fame it will be exclusively for having defeated Tom Brady in the SB twice, once when the Patriots had gone 16-0 during the regular season. This is what I like to call the Namath Factor, after Joe Namath famously upset Unitas and the Colts. Unlike with Namath, Eli Manning was never a top 3 QB in any positive major passing category, although he led the league in getting intercepted 3x. Manning was also quite inconsistent and seemed to lack the same fire as a leader has his brother Peyton had. While he did lead the Giants to five 10+ win seasons, his overall record was 117-117. I can't end this write up on Manning without mentioning his famous pass to David Tyree in one of his SB victories. That play could be the most iconic play in NFL history. Every NFL fan should watch it, if they haven't yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 14, 2022 Author Share Posted September 14, 2022 #52: Milt Plum Primary team: Cleveland Browns Born in New Jersey College: Penn State 2nd round pick in 1957 4x in the top 3 in Comp%, leading three of these seasons. 3x in the top 3 in Low INT%, leading the league in two of these seasons. 2x in the top 3 in TD% 2x in the top 3 in AYA, once leading the league. 2x in the top 3 in QB Rating, once leading the league. NFL Record for longest completed pass by a QB to himself (20 yards) His primary team is the Browns because that's where he makes this list, although he played more seasons with the Detroit Lions. He was drafted in 1957 in the same draft in which the Browns drafted the legendary Jim Brown. After backing up his first season, he became the primary starter for the team from 1958 through 1961, and was one of the best in the league. His QB rating of 110.4 in 1960 was the highest QB rating in a season until Joe Montana broke that record 29 years later. Plum was on a sure path to the Hall of Fame until he was traded in a blockbuster trade deal with the Lions after the 1961 seasons. This probably proved that Plum's success was due to having Jim Brown, an unstoppable RB, on the offense with him. Plum's INT% doubled, sometimes more than that. His TD% was half of what it was. He even led the league in INTs one year. He played 8 post-Browns seasons--6 with the Lions--and none really comparable to any one of his Browns seasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcczar Posted September 14, 2022 Author Share Posted September 14, 2022 #51: Jack Kemp Primary team: Buffalo Bills Born in Los Angeles, California College: Occidental 17th Round in 1957 2x Champion, including 1x as MVP 1x MVP 2x 1st Team All-Pro This is the same Jack Kemp that became a notable US Rep and was Bob Dole's VP nominee on the 1996 GOP ticket. As QB, Kemp had even greater success, making it to five AFL Championships (AFL stats count as NFL stats). Despite his ability to win (65-37-3 record), he wasn't the most efficient passer. He averaged only a 46.7 comp% and had 114 TDs to 183 INTs. On six occasions, he threw 20+ INTs in a season. One must attribute his success to unparalled leadership, but it took him a bit to get there. He was drafted by the Lions in 1957 but cut as a rookie, but later signed by the Steelers that year. Next season he played first for the 49ers and then as the Giants but he never played a game for either time. In 1959, he played in a game in the Canadian Football League before being cut for the 5th time in his career. In 1960, the new AFL (for 10 years the rival to the NFL) was formed, which meant more football players were needed, and so Kemp was employed. He was signed by the Chargers, where he led the team to a 12-2 record, despite mediocre passing numbers. The Chargers waived Kemp in 1962 after injuring his hand and the Bills picked him up, where he ultimately won 2 Championships. Kemp is the greatest Bills QB before Jim Kelly, and is the third best QB of the AFL after Len Dawson and Joe Namath. At the time of his retirement, Kemp had the record for being sacked the most in one game (11), but the record has since been broken. His son Jeff Kemp was a decent to good backup QB for 11 seasons. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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