Terry Bradshaw is right about Tom Brady and wrong about Terry Bradshaw.
Bradshaw created quite a stir Thursday on 93.7 FM, especially in New England, when he said he didn’t consider Tom Brady the greatest quarterback of all time. That’s not permitted in New England, and it’s violently frowned upon by most in the national media.
The headline at cbssports.com read “Terry Bradshaw does not think Tom Brady is the GOAT and he has three surprising quarterbacks ahead of him.”
The writer, Bryan DeArdo, probably would have agreed with that headline regardless of the three quarterbacks mentioned.
Here’s what Bradshaw said: “I don’t think (Brady) is the best quarterback of all time. It’s hard to say. He may be the best quarterback we’ve had in the last 30 years. Is he better than (Roger) Staubach? No. Is he better than Dan Fouts? No. Dan Marino? No. I’m talking talent when you’re putting all of it together.”
Why would those names surprise anybody? All three are Hall of Fame quarterbacks. Only someone who never saw those three play would be surprised.
Bradshaw went on to say if it’s about who has won the most Super Bowls, then Brady is the best. Bradshaw also said he doesn’t believe Brady is better than Joe Montana but conceded he might be better than Drew Brees.
Bradshaw seems to have gotten the impression, somewhere along the way, that football is a team sport.
Brady does nothing better than the four quarterbacks Bradshaw ranked ahead of him, and there are some things Brady doesn’t do as well.
No need to bore you by reminding you that, using the standard that whoever has the most Super Bowl rings is the GOAT, then Eli Manning and Trent Dilfer are better than Marino.
Where Bradshaw got it wrong was when he was asked about himself. He was asked to name the greatest quarterback in Steelers history.
“I would give it to Ben. His numbers far exceed mine. I may have more Super Bowls, but he is a much better quarterback. I wasn’t bad in my era, but he’s big, strong, accurate, puts up monstrous numbers and he’s won two Super Bowls. I pass that baton to him gladly. I absolutely have no problem with that. He deserves it.”
Ask anybody who covered Bradshaw when he played for the Steelers (there aren’t many of us left in the Pittsburgh media), and they will tell you he would say things knowing it would cause a stir and then get lots of enjoyment from watching the media and fan reaction.
I covered him and worked with him, and I don’t believe for one second he thinks Ben Roethlisberger is the greatest quarterback in Steelers history.
It’s only been a few days since he said it. Give him time, and he’ll contradict himself.
If he thinks Fouts is better than Brady, despite Brady’s six Super Bowl rings and astronomical stats, it makes no sense for him to declare Roethlisberger the Steelers’ GOAT because of his stats.
Trust me. He knows Roethlisberger does nothing better than he could do. Bradshaw also knows he would throw for 5,000 yards a season in today’s NFL.
For Bradshaw or anyone else to believe Roethlisberger is better, one would have to believe if the 2010 version of Roethlisberger showed up in Pittsburgh in 1978, he would win the starting job and make Bradshaw the backup.
You can be sure Bradshaw has enjoyed watching the reaction to his comments.
Bradshaw knew exactly what he was doing when he answered the question about who was the greater Steelers quarterback. He wanted to create a stir.
Mission accomplished.
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