HOW REPLACING A LEGEND IS REALLY DIFFICULT (PART 1)

HOW REPLACING A LEGEND IS REALLY DIFFICULT PART 1
By Don Stokes Senior Writer-Midwest Region- Football Reporters Online
As I watched the end of Super Bowl XLV come to a conclusion as the Green Bay Packers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25 in the “gigantic” football palace that Jerry Jones built, I wondered out loud as the Packers QB Aaron Rodgers took the final knee to run out the clock the magnitude of that moment must be for him. As the Cowboys Stadium turf was engulfed with players, press, NFL bigwigs and fans my lovely wife reminded me of the very first time we saw the newest SB MVP Aaron Rodgers. It was on a Saturday morning NFL draft day in 2005 at Radio City Music Hall.
I recalled watching him on television sitting gleefully at a table with his family and well wishers with all of the other expected early draft picks of that season nearby. Rodgers was expected to be an early 1st round draft pick.

As the names QB Alex Smith, RB Ronnie Brown, CB Antrelle Rolle and others were continually called to the stage but surprisingly not his he still sat and the time ticked on. Minutes turned into hours watching the announcers continued surprise of a quarterback of Aaron Rodgers quality remained available. The smile that was broad and generous on Aaron’s face at the start of the afternoon had turned into puzzlement and disbelief as the day went by. It was merciful when both he and his group moved away from their front row accommodations and also away from the glare of the television cameras. Many Hours later just one word came from both my wife and me simultaneously when the Green Bay Packers made Aaron Rodgers their 1st round choice (the 24th player chosen). FINALLY!
Fast forward 5+ years and of course the rest is history. Now Aaron Rodgers can stand alongside other Packer quarterback legends like Brett Favre and Bart Starr as a Super Bowl winning QB. A thought came to me: Just how really difficult is it to replace a legend? I did a little research (yes I do that on occasion) and I came up with these numbers.
But first let’s use the following criteria:
Number one: Only Super Bowl winning quarterbacks from 1967-2011 (players from the Super Bowl era)

Number two: The Super Bowl winning QB must be a current Pro Football Hall of Famer (hence the word legend). There were many QB’s who played in the NFL during the Super Bowl era who put up great numbers (Tarkenton, Fouts, Marino, Moon, etc.) who didn’t win a Super Bowl. This discussion is not about them.

Number three: Meaning the following Super Bowl winning QB’s DO NOT count in this equation…… All due respect to Chicago Bears QB Jim McMahon (1985) NY Giants QB Phil Simms and Jeff Hostetler (1986 and 1990) Washington Redskins QB’s Joe Theismann, Doug Williams and Mark Rypien (1982, 1987 and 1991) Oakland Raiders/ Los Angeles Raiders QB’s Ken Stabler and Jim Plunkett (1976, 1980 and 1983) St. Louis Rams QB Kurt Warner (1999) Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Brad Johnson (2002) and Baltimore Ravens QB Trent Dilfer (2000). While some of these QB’s may wind up in Canton one day (see Warner and Stabler) at the moment they are not.

Number four: for the most famous number 4 Brett Favre……He’ll be a slam dunk Hall of Famer in five years but with his track record he might return in 2011. I will not place his numbers against Rodgers. The question should be when do we start the countdown to Canton?

Number five: No active Super Bowl winning QB is allowed on this list for obvious reasons. These 5 are still playing so they haven’t been replaced just yet. No (Peyton or Eli) brothers Manning, No Big Ben Roethlisberger, No Cool Drew Brees and no Mr. GQ himself Tom Brady.



The stats used are from the Super Bowl winning quarterbacks’ last SB win (or in the case of Namath and Unitas, their only SB win) and his replacements best NFL season. The numbers (in most cases) also will show just how difficult it is to replace a Super Bowl winning QB. We’ll start with four University of Alabama Quarterbacks. Let’s begin with the winner of the first two Super Bowls: The Packers QB Bart Starr and his replacement also from the Crimson Tide, Scott Hunter.
Starr final Super Bowl II season in 1967 (top) compared to Scott Hunter’s NFL 1972 season (bottom).
Games Att Comp Pct% Yards TD INT Rating
14 210 115 54.8 1823 9 17 64.4
14 199 86 43.2 1252 6 9 55.5

Although Starr 1967 numbers was considered an off-season for him (8-3-1 in his starts) the Pack still won SB II against Oakland 32-14 and he was voted the SB II MVP. As for Scott Hunter who replaced Starr during Starr’s last season (1971) his 1972 season even by 1970’s standards was abysmal. Fortunately the Packers kept Starr as his QB coach and along with a strong running game (John Brockington and McArthur Lane ran for over 1,800 yards between the two) Green Bay won the NFC Central with a 10-4 record. In the preceding seasons Scott Hunter did not progress well as an NFL QB and was playing for the Buffalo Bills by 1974. Not a great choice to replace the legendary Bart Starr.

Let’s now look at the QB from the swinging ‘60’s with the white shoes and the ‘guarantee win’. Super Bowl III MVP Jet Joe Namath compared to his replacement at the helm 1st round pick Richard Todd in 1976.

Joe Namath 1968 Super Bowl III season (top) compared to Richard Todd 1981 NFL season (bottom)

Games Att Comp Pct% Yards TD INT Rating
14 380 187 49.2 3147 15 17 72.1
16 497 279 56.1 3231 25 13 81.8

Namath’s game calling changed to a more conservative running game approach from previous seasons which help lower his INT’s total from 28 in 1967 to 17 in 1968. The forecoming 70’s were rough on both the Jets and Broadway Joe indeed. Numerous injuries ravaged Namath during the 1970, ’71 and ’73 seasons (he played but 15 out of 42 games during that period). With their 1st pick the Jets drafted Alabama’s Richard Todd in 1976 and he split time with Joe during Namath’s final Jet season. While Broadway Joe thrived under the hot spotlight of the New York Press during his playing days, Richard Todd wilted under the same heat. He never seemed comfortable with the task of following a sports icon the likes of Joe Willie in the Big Apple.

Todd, who took the Jets to back to back playoffs seasons (’81 and ’82) for the 1st time since 1968-‘69 had the all the physical skills to become a solid everyday QB. His best playoff finish was in the strike shortened season of 1982 when he led the Jets to an AFC Title game appearance. After a disappointing 7-9 record with 26 interceptions Richard Todd was traded to the New Orleans Saints after the 1983 season. After 6 rollercoaster seasons from Todd the separation from the Jets was much needed and was mutual for both parties involved.

In Kansas City, the Chiefs had their eventual replacement for their Hall of famer former Purdue QB Len Dawson on their roster for over 8 seasons before the job was totally his. Mike Livingston was drafted in the 2nd round from SMU in 1968 but did not truly have the QB job until Dawson finally retired after the 1975 season.

Here are the numbers for SB IV MVP Len Dawson 1969 (top) final Super Bowl appearance and Mike Livingston’s 1976 NFL season (bottom)

Games Att Comp Pct% Yards TD INT Rating
9 166 87 59.0 1323 9 13 69.9
14 338 191 55.7 2682 12 13 77.6

The ’69 season wasn’t a great one statistically for Len Dawson. He missed 5 full games and parts of others with a knee injury. With the added burden of a gambling investigation falsely placed upon him before the game Dawson led the Kansas City attack to a convincing Super Bowl IV victory with crisp pinpoint passing. Livingston in his 2nd year at that point actually was 6-0 during the 1969 season and was named to the AFL All-Star game (along with Dawson).

Numerous injuries nagged Len Dawson for the later part of his career making Mike Livingston a very important insurance policy at QB for the Chiefs in the 1970’s. By 1976 the great Chiefs teams of the 1960’s was a distant memory although with 2682 passing yards Mike Livingston finished 6th in the NFL that season. Both he and the Chiefs never achieved championship success again. Kansas City would not return to the NFL playoffs until 1986, seven seasons after Livingston retired at age 34.

There are times when following a legend is nearly just impossible. Such was the case when you are the 1972 Baltimore Colts and two seasons removed from your Super Bowl V 16-13 victory against the Dallas Cowboys. Your management has the 39 year old John Unitas one of the all time greats at QB benched. Surely you realize this would be a tough sell replacing the pride of Baltimore so you better have a solid choice for your new QB. The Colts chose Marty Domres; a bright articulate young man from an Ivy league school (Columbia). But Domres really never had a chance.

The numbers for John Unitas SB V 1970 season (top) and Marty Domres 1972 NFL season (bottom)

Games Att Comp Pct% Yards TD INT Rating
14 321 166 51.7 2213 14 18 65.1
12 222 115 51.8 1392 11 6 76.6


During this first year of the NFL-AFL merger the former Louisville Cardinal QB Unitas had somewhat erratic season throwing the ball. Fortunately the Colts had a strong defense in 1970 just enough to carry them to Super Bowl V. Unitas was injured in the second quarter of that game giving veteran Earl Morrall a chance to redeem himself. Morrall took over and led them to victory.
Just going by the numbers Marty Domres had a nice 1972 season but the Colt team finished 5-9. Baltimore soon traded Unitas to the San Diego Chargers before the 1973 season, where he retired at the end of the year. But unfortunately for Marty the Colts also drafted a QB (LSU’s Bert Jones) with their 1st pick in the 1973 NFL Draft. It was apparent the younger Jones had better natural skills (stronger arm and scrambling ability) than Domres and in time he led the Colts to AFC Eastern Division crowns in 1975, ’76 and 1977. As for Marty Domres? He finished his career as a Jet backup QB in 1977.

An observer from the sidelines during Super Bowl V Dallas Cowboys loss to the Colts, backup QB Roger Staubach would get his opportunity the following season and lead the Cowboys to their 1st Super Bowl title in 1971. Veteran holdover QB Craig Morton started the 1971 campaign under center but after 5 games the Cowboys offense stalled. Enter Roger Staubach former Naval Academy and Heisman trophy winner, who at one point during the 1971 season won 9 games in a row. The MVP of SB VI, Staubach would soon grow to become “Captain Comeback” pulling victory from the jaws of defeat numerous times. During Roger Staubach’s eight seasons as a starter the Cowboys played in 4 different Super Bowls. His backup and replacement ASU QB Danny White had been a Cowboy since 1976 (he was the regular punter) and was ready to take over the quarterback reins when the last of numerous concussions ended Roger “the Dodger’s” playing career after the 1979 season.

Here is Roger Staubach SB XII 1977 season (top) and Danny White 1981 NFL season (bottom)
Games Att Comp Pct% Yards TD INT Rating
14 361 210 58.2 2620 18 9 87.0
16 391 223 57.0 3098 22 13 87.5


If you look at Staubach 1977 and White’s 1981 passer ratings they’re eerily similar. Both Dallas QB’s had RB Tony Dorsett either in his 1st season (1007 yards 4.8 avg in 1977) and at his peak (1648 yards 4.8 avg in 1981). Both had strong defenses and the same head coach with the fedora (Tom Landry). Dallas gave up 15.8 points a game in ’77 ranking 8th, 17.3 in 1981 ranking 7th. So why didn’t the 1981 team win the prize as did the 1977 squad accomplished? Two words: The “Catch”. A high pass into the end zone corner from a young former Notre Dame QB named Montana to a nondescript wide out named Dwight Clark with: 24 on the clock began the 49er dynasty and ended the best chance for a Danny White led team to win a Super Bowl title.

For three straight seasons Danny White (1980,’81 and ’82) led the Cowboys to the NFC Title game. And each time they were defeated. White, a good QB who was never forgiven for following Staubach in big D was prone to turnovers. He caught a bad break as the core group on both the offense and defense side of the ball began to age. He happened to play with the Cowboys towards the end of that teams’ talent run. Towards the end of Danny White’s in career in 1988 the Cowboys had become the laughing stock of the NFC East.

Before the exploits of a certain number #13 becoming the face of the franchise in Miami there was another great quarterback in South Florida than preceded his arrival who wore number#12: Bob Griese. From the very beginning Griese was the choice at quarterback for the Miami Dolphins in their early years. An AFL All-star in his very first season (1967) Griese from Purdue University was a cerebral signal caller who took the majority of snaps during his playing career. Other than injury (playing but 6 games because of a broken leg during the undefeated season of 1972) Griese was a durable quarterback who remarkably made the 1973 Pro Bowl despite averaging only 104 yards a game passing that season. In Miami’s Super Bowl VIII victory against Minnesota that year Bob Griese threw but 7 passes the entire game.

In 1980 Miami drafted QB David Woodley from LSU to replace the aging 35 year old Griese. As a rookie Woodley started 11 and played in 13 games that year easing the retirement of Griese (because of a shoulder injury) in 1980.

Here are the stats for Bob Griese 1973 SBVIII season (top) and David Woodley’s 1981 NFL season (bottom)

Games Att Comp Pct% Yards TD INT Rating
13 218 116 53.2 1422 17 8 84.3
15 366 191 52.2 2470 12 13 69.8


During Griese’s time the Dolphins relied more on their so called “no name” defense and the running of backs Csonka, Morris and Kiick to accomplish their place in NFL lore. A perfect season (17-0) preceded the 12-2 1973 Super bowl champion club with Griese at the helm. During the latter half of Bob’s career he threw much more passes than the Super Bowl clubs. Miami still remained competitive but never returned to the Super Bowl again during his playing career.

Regarding the quarterback play of David Woodley? As many students of the game know a mobile QB with a strong arm doesn’t always equate success. Such was the case with David Woodley. His career started well (he was voted the Dolphins MVP in his rookie 1980 campaign) but as a QB he never got better. The Dolphins had developed the league’s strongest defense by 1981 (11-5 winning the AFC East) in 1982 Miami’s “Killer B’s” defense took them to Super Bowl XVII but was hampered by Woodley’s inconsistent play at QB which would dog him his entire NFL career. By 1983 Don Shula had grown tired of Woodley’s up and down play and made rookie QB Dan Marino his choice as the starter. Woodley was shipped to Pittsburgh to compete for the starting quarterback job in 1984(Terry Bradshaw retired after the 1983 season). A change of scenery didn’t change Woodley’s play. David Woodley retired in 1986 while in the same year Dan Marino threw 44 touchdown passes. One could say Woodley was the bridge between the two Miami Hall of Fame players.

Next week part 2: Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana, Steve Young, John Elway and……. Cliff Stout?