Will Tom Brady lead the Patriots to another Super Bowl victory?

Quarterbacks are to football what pitchers are to baseball.  A Wide Receiver or a Second-Baseman can have a bad day.   If the pitcher or the quarterback has a bad day, the team is most likely going to lose.  They control play,  change game momentum,  and can either excite or anger fans on one single play or pitch.  When they are on their game, your team usually has a chance to win right to the end if they haven’t already secured victory.  In summary, the best quarterbacks and pitchers are also good leaders on and off the field.

Before reading about some of the top quarterbacks in history, check out how the current quarterbacks are doing at the Sportsbook Review for the latest NFL action.

Here are a few top quarterbacks who were also top leaders:

Johnny Unitas

Johnny U was with the Baltimore Colts from 1955 to 1973.  You might say that later quarterbacks would try to imitate his style of leading a great passing game.  He had a flair for the media and was popular on and off the field.

Unitas held the NFL record for throwing touchdown passes in 47 consecutive games from 1956 to 1960 until Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints eclipsed the record this year. “The Golden Arm” led the Colts to victory in Super Bowl V and also to NFL World Championships in 1958 and 1959.

Roger Staubach

Roger Staubach’s career with the Dallas Cowboys spanned a decade from 1969 to 1979.  During that time, he led the Cowboys to victories in Super Bowl VI and Super Bowl XII and was named to the Pro Bowl 6 times.  He was named MVP of Super Bowl VI and is one of only a few players to with both the Super Bowl MVP and the Heisman Trophy.  Roger is famous for a ‘Hail Mary’ pass thrown against the Minnesota Vikings during the 1975 playoffs.

Not only was Staubach (aka Captain America) a leader on the field, but he took his game off the field as well.  He built a multi-billion dollar real estate company in which he recently stepped down from CEO position back in 2007 after spending 30 years of service.

Joe Montana

“Comeback Joe” was responsible for leading his San Francisco 49ers to 31 come-back wins when behind in the 4th quarter.  Also known as “Joe Cool”, he spent 14 seasons with the 49ers leading them to 4 Super Bowls and earning himself a spot in the Hall of Fame.  He is also an 8-time Pro Bowler who executed “The Catch“, a famous play at the end of one of the championship games.  “Golden Joe” now owns horses and wineries.

John Elway

John Elway is another good example of a leader on and off the field.  His career spanned 16 seasons with the Denver Broncos leading them to 6 AFC Championships and 5 Super Bowls, notching victories in his last 2 and earning MVP in the final one.  Elway executed many clutch plays usually with under 2 minutes left in the game.  One particular play, called “The Drive“, had Elway leading the Broncos 98 yards down field in a clutch series of plays to come back and tie the Cleveland Browns in an AFC Championship Game.

Elway was inducted into the Hall of Fame during his first year of eligibility in 2004.  He took his leadership off the field into business and is now executive vice president of operations for the Denver Broncos.

Tom Brady

With Tom Brady in control, the New England Patriots always have a chance to win the Super Bowl.   Brady has already led his team to 5 Super Bowl appearances having won 3 of them and was named MVP in 2 of them. He did all this in only 10 seasons and his looking to add to his accomplishments.  In 2007, Brady set a record for most touchdown passes in a season with 50 and led the Patriots to an undefeated regular season.

Brady grew up in San Mateo, California and was said to be a big fan of Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers.  Now, they are presently the only two quarterbacks to share the honor of winning NFL and Super Bowl MVP titles multiple times.

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

The Storied History of Denver Bronco’s Quarterbacks!
Super Bowl’s Youngest Winning Quarterbacks