There’s more to a team than a quarterback
Eli Manning might have screwed it all up – just as he’s done these past five years, New England Patriots fans would say. When the New York Giants beat the Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI, Eli won his second Super Bowl ring, which gave him twice as many rings as older brother Peyton. Does this also make him twice as good as Peyton? Not quite, but you just might find some experts who wouldn’t argue it.
NFL football might be the ultimate team sport, but that doesn’t stop pundits from ranking players based on their on-field statistics, winning percentage, individual skills or achievement. There’s no other sport where so many different individuals contribute to team excellence, yet every year key players are hailed as having been central to a Super Bowl victory, thereby minimizing the role of others on the team. And quarterback is the one position where ranking players becomes complicated – because where does Eli Manning rank in the current quarterback food chain?
It’s a futile exercise, really. Is Eli better than older players such as Peyton, Tom Brady or Drew Brees? Probably not, though he may think he is, and he does have one more Super Bowl title than two of them. How about Eli’s counterparts or even quarterbacks who are a few years younger? Other than Ben Roethlisberger and possibly Aaron Rodgers, he’s probably better than most. But that’s just the thing – there’s no clear way to figure it out. Eli Manning might have beaten Brady twice in the Super Bowl, but Brady owns Peyton Manning, who himself has a 2-0 record against Eli’s Giants.
Currently, Super Bowl titles are used as tiebreakers when it comes to ranking NFL quarterbacks. However, there’s only so much that Super Bowl rings can do. If players are to be ranked according to their Super Bowl titles, then Joe Montana is the resounding No. 1 quarterback in NFL history. This may well be true, but this turns Terry Bradshaw into a clear No. 2, which is laughable. Super Bowl titles also turn a quite excellent Jim Kelly into the sorriest of NFL quarterbacks. While he did lose four Super Bowl games in a row, not many players can say that they played in four in their entire careers, much less four in a row. History might have been kinder to him had he been a little more lucky at one of those title games – or had Adam Vinatieri for a place-kicker, like Brady, instead of Scott Norwood.
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It’s obvious that the Super Bowl rings don’t tell the full story. They don’t show that Peyton only won his ring when his defense picked it up in 2006, and only when he was pitted against the timeless Rex Grossman; nor do they show that Eli has accomplished absolutely zilch in the playoffs other than for the 2008 and 2012 playoffs; nor that Brady hasn’t won a title since he’s had a 1,000-yard rusher (Corey Dillon, 2004) and that he’s played in five Super Bowls that were decided by a combined 16 points.
If Super Bowl titles aren’t enough, then maybe statistics can settle the debate – except they really don’t. Judging strictly by statistics means that Brett Favre is the greatest quarterback in NFL history. But can we really accept as the best ever a man who threw 336 career interceptions? Just as important, can we accept as the best ever a man who thought it would be wise to send pictures of his dong to a New York Jets employee? If it’s not Favre then statistics will say that the greatest is Peyton Manning, but of course his one Super Bowl ring and 9-10 career playoffs record pale in comparison to others. Or perhaps it is Dan Marino, he of the rocket arm and glorious statistics and as many Super Bowl rings as me.
The solution is probably a combination of both individual excellence and team results. This leaves us with John Elway, who probably has better statistics than someone like Brady or Montana but who hasn’t won quite as many Super Bowl titles. Yet, giving the title to Elway leaves out Montana and his 4-0 Super Bowl record – and this brings us full circle.
Really, the only sure thing is that Eli Manning was right last summer in telling everyone who would listen that he was part of the quarterback elite. Beyond that, it’s nothing but educated guesses. Of course, the few rule changes of the past five years, which favor so clearly the quarterbacks, will throw another wrench into such debates.
If Eli won Super Bowl XLII and XLVI, it’s likely because the 2011 New York Giants were a great team – and the same goes for Peyton, Brees, Brady, Montana and so forth down the list.
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