21 replies to this topic

[The Jerk]

I've found five games in which the starting QBs each had won two or more Super Bowls as starters.
Three of them occurred in 1979:
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh/Dallas (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas @ Pittsburgh (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami @ Pittsburgh (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)

The first such matchup was November 14, 1976: Miami @ Pittsburgh (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
The final such matchup was September 22, 1985: SF & LA Raiders (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)

Does anyone know of any similar matchup that I missed?
Are any of these games incorrect?

Brady and Roethlisberger are now eligible to become the next such matchup. Unfortunately, it can only happen in the post-season in 2009.

Edited to specify SB rings in title on Nov. 4, 2012.

Edited by The Jerk, 04 November 2012 - 07:55 PM.

[MarshallRob]

I've found five games in which the starting QBs each had won two or more Super Bowls as starters.
Three of them occurred in 1979:
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh/Dallas (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas @ Pittsburgh (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami @ Pittsburgh (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)

The first such matchup was November 14, 1976: Miami @ Pittsburgh (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
The final such matchup was September 22, 1985: SF & LA Raiders (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)

Does anyone know of any similar matchup that I missed?
Are any of these games incorrect?

Brady and Roethlisberger are now eligible to become the next such matchup. Unfortunately, it can only happen in the post-season in 2009.

November 5, 1978: Dallas @ Miami (Staubach 2, Griese 2)

[The Jerk]

I've found five games in which the starting QBs each had won two or more Super Bowls as starters.
Three of them occurred in 1979:
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh/Dallas (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas @ Pittsburgh (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami @ Pittsburgh (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)

The first such matchup was November 14, 1976: Miami @ Pittsburgh (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
The final such matchup was September 22, 1985: SF & LA Raiders (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)

Does anyone know of any similar matchup that I missed?
Are any of these games incorrect?

Brady and Roethlisberger are now eligible to become the next such matchup. Unfortunately, it can only happen in the post-season in 2009.

November 5, 1978: Dallas @ Miami (Staubach 2, Griese 2)

I specifically checked for Griese/Staubach matchups in 1978 and 1979 but somehow I managed to miss it.

[The Jerk]

To reset, there have been six games that featured starting QBs who both had won at least two Super Bowls as starters.

November 14, 1976: Miami 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
November 5, 1978: Dallas 16 @ 23 Miami (Staubach 2, Griese 2)
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh 35/Dallas 31 (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami 14 @ Pittsburgh 34 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)
September 22, 1985: San Francisco 34 @ LA Raiders 10 (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)

In addition, there have been ten games that featured five rings (again won as starters). Two of the games are listed above; the other eight are:

September 7, 1980: Houston 17 @ Pittsburgh 31 (Stabler 1, Bradshaw 4)
December 4, 1980: Pittsburgh 0 @ Houston 6 (Bradshaw 4, Stabler 1)
October 26, 1981: Houston 13 @ Pittsburgh 26 (Stabler 1, Bradshaw 4)
December 3, 1990: NY Giants 3 @ San Francisco 7 (Simms 1, Montana 4)
December 26, 1993: Kansas City 10 @ Minnesota 30 (Montana 4, McMahon 1)
November 6, 1994: LA Raiders 3 @ Kansas City 13 (Hostetler 1, Montana 4)
November 20, 1994: Cleveland 13 @ Kansas City 20 (Rypien 1, Montana 4)
December 24, 1994: Kansas City 19 @ LA Raiders 9 (Montana 4, Hostetler 1)

[MarshallRob]

November 14, 2010. New England Patriots at Pittsburgh Steelers. If Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger both take the field in this game then we will see our first matchup between two quarterbacks with multiple Super Bowl rings since September 22, 1985. Will Roethlisberger still be a Steeler? Will he be on suspension? In prison? Or does history happen?

[The Jerk]

Here's the original thread from 2009 bumped by Marshall Rob in the offseason.

[kodycutter]

Bradshaw went 6-1; Montana 5-1 in their matchups. Pretty good.

Edited by kodycutter, 11 November 2010 - 04:54 PM.

[MarshallRob]

I made an attempt to count up all games matching up QB's with two or more rings in the pre-Super Bowl era as well. There were a lot more back then but most of them involve just four quarterbacks. The very first NFL contest ever between quarterbacks who'd each won two NFL title games came on November 21, 1943, when Sammy Baugh's Washington Redskins topped Sid Luckman's Chicago Bears 21-7. Luckman got revenge a month later in an even more historic game, the 1943 NFL Championship Game, where he became the first QB to win three titles. The two men played seven times in all after each had won a second title.

11/21/43 WAS 21 CHI 7
12/26/43 CHI 41 WAS 21 NFL Championship Game
11/18/45 WAS 28 CHI 21
11/17/46 CHI 24 WAS 20
10/26/47 CHI 56 WAS 20
11/28/48 CHI 48 WAS 13
11/20/49 CHI 31 WAS 21

Coincidentally, Bart Starr and Johnny Unitas also matched up seven times after each man had earned at least two rings.

09/29/63 GB 31 BAL 20
09/20/64 BAL 21 GB 20
10/18/64 BAL 24 GB 21
09/26/65 GB 20 BAL 17
09/10/66 GB 24 BAL 3
12/10/66 GB 14 BAL 10
11/05/67 BAL 13 GB 10

Unfortunately, injuries to Starr, Unitas, or both wiped out several more potential meetings including the 1965 playoff tiebreaker game that would have been the only postseason matchup in their classic rivalry.

Tommy Thompson won back-to-back titles with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1948-1949. He played one last season in 1950 and squared off twice against Sammy Baugh’s Washington Redskins. At the time of the first matchup the aging Baugh had actually been benched but he won the job back by the time of the second meeting. Thompson's Eagles still crushed Baugh and the Redskins.

11/12/50 PHI 33 WAS 0

So that makes 15 total matchups between QB's who won multiple-championships pre-Super Bowl. But there might be a few more. Arnie Herber's actually the first man to ever twice quarterback a team to victory in the NFL Championship Game, leading the Green Bay Packers to titles in 1936 and 1939. He retired in 1940 but during WWII he came out of retirement to play for the New York Giants in 1944 and 1945. The Giants played Baugh’s Redskins twice in both of those seasons.

12/03/44 NYG 16 WAS 13
12/10/44 NYG 31 WAS 0
10/28/45 WAS 24 NYG 14
12/09/45 WAS 17 NYG 0

But I can't tell from the available information if both men actually played QB in all four games. According to the boxscores at Pro Football Reference, Baugh tossed a TD in the first, third and fourth matchups with the Giants, and Herber only threw for one in the second matchup. Baugh started only 4 games in 1944 (he was busy with his cattle ranch that supplied beef to help the war effort). So Baugh might have missed that second 1944 matchup with New York. Meanwhile, Herber’s credited with starting only 3 games in 1944 and 0 in 1945. So I have no idea if which, if any, of the 1944-1945 Giants/Redskins matchups count as games matching up two-time champion quarterbacks.


Note: I didn't count AAFC or AFL titles.

[MarshallRob]

To reset, there have been six games that featured starting QBs who both had won at least two Super Bowls as starters.

November 14, 1976: Miami 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
November 5, 1978: Dallas 16 @ 23 Miami (Staubach 2, Griese 2)
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh 35/Dallas 31 (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami 14 @ Pittsburgh 34 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)
September 22, 1985: San Francisco 34 @ LA Raiders 10 (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)

In addition, there have been ten games that featured five rings (again won as starters). Two of the games are listed above; the other eight are:

September 7, 1980: Houston 17 @ Pittsburgh 31 (Stabler 1, Bradshaw 4)
December 4, 1980: Pittsburgh 0 @ Houston 6 (Bradshaw 4, Stabler 1)
October 26, 1981: Houston 13 @ Pittsburgh 26 (Stabler 1, Bradshaw 4)
December 3, 1990: NY Giants 3 @ San Francisco 7 (Simms 1, Montana 4)
December 26, 1993: Kansas City 10 @ Minnesota 30 (Montana 4, McMahon 1)
November 6, 1994: LA Raiders 3 @ Kansas City 13 (Hostetler 1, Montana 4)
November 20, 1994: Cleveland 13 @ Kansas City 20 (Rypien 1, Montana 4)
December 24, 1994: Kansas City 19 @ LA Raiders 9 (Montana 4, Hostetler 1)

Time to update the list. After 25 years without a matchup between QB's with two or more rings, we've got a historic matchup in consecutive seasons. With the same two QB's.

November 14, 1976: Miami 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
November 5, 1978: Dallas 16 @ 23 Miami (Staubach 2, Griese 2)
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh 35/Dallas 31 (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami 14 @ Pittsburgh 34 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)
September 22, 1985: San Francisco 34 @ LA Raiders 10 (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)
November 14, 2010: New England 39 @ Pittsburgh 26 (Brady 3, Roethlisberger)
October 30, 2011: New England? @ Pittsburgh? (Brady 3, Roethlisberger 2)

[Bankerguy]

Aikman/Young?

[BobbyLayne]

Aikman/Young?

Young as a starter = 1

Believe this thread is QBs with 2 or more as a starter

[The Jerk]

Updated list including today:

November 14, 1976: Miami 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
November 5, 1978: Dallas 16 @ 23 Miami (Staubach 2, Griese 2)
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh 35/Dallas 31 (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami 14 @ Pittsburgh 34 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)
September 22, 1985: San Francisco 34 @ LA Raiders 10 (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)
November 14, 2010: New England 39 @ Pittsburgh 26 (Brady 3, Roethlisberger 2)
October 30, 2011: New England 17 @ Pittsburgh 25 (Brady 3, Roethlisberger 2)

[The Jerk]

It's that time again! One of my favorite topics, although apparently not that interesting to most other FBGs. Nevertheless...

By my research, Sunday's Steelers @ Giants game will be the ninth contest in NFL history that features starting QBs who have already won multiple Super Bowls as starters. Even though it's now occurred the past three seasons, prior to this recent run only one similar matchup had occurred in the previous 30 seasons.

[MarshallRob]

It's that time again! One of my favorite topics, although apparently not that interesting to most other FBGs. Nevertheless...

By my research, Sunday's Steelers @ Giants game will be the ninth contest in NFL history that features starting QBs who have already won multiple Super Bowls as starters. Even though it's now occurred the past three seasons, prior to this recent run only one similar matchup had occurred in the previous 30 seasons.

I'm also interested in this topic. I believe this is the first season since 1979 with three active quarterbacks with two or more Super Bowl rings. We have never had four, but that could change if Rodgers, Brees, or Peyton Manning win a second ring this season.

[The Jerk]

I'm also interested in this topic. I believe this is the first season since 1979 with three active quarterbacks with two or more Super Bowl rings. We have never had four, but that could change if Rodgers, Brees, or Peyton Manning win a second ring this season.

Unless I'm missing someone, I also believe there has never been more than one active QB with three rings as a starter. That could also change this season if the Giants or Steelers win their third recent Super Bowl.

[The Jerk]

I'm also interested in this topic.

Based on the apparent lack of interest from everyone else, perhaps we should get a room.

Did you write an article/blog post concerning this a few years back? I thought I saw something written by you when I did an Internet search a couple of years ago. It made me smile.

[5Rings]

[kardplayer]

I'm interested too. Love these things... Just don't have a lot to say!

[Banemorth]

Very cool stuff here!

[The Jerk]

Just read that the 2004 QB draft class is the only one to have produced more than one multiple-Super Bowl champion. The vaunted 1983 QB class only produced one champion with two total championships (Elway). Of course, that class combined for 11 SB appearances compared to 5 so far from the 2004 class.

Edited by The Jerk, 03 November 2012 - 10:01 AM.

[dgreen]

Never saw this thread before. Good stuff.

[The Jerk]

Updated list through 2012 regular season (at least):

November 14, 1976: Miami 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 2)
November 5, 1978: Dallas 16 @ 23 Miami (Staubach 2, Griese 2)
Janury 21, 1979/Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh 35/Dallas 31 (Bradshaw 2, Staubach 2)
October 28, 1979: Dallas 3 @ Pittsburgh 14 (Staubach 2, Bradshaw 3)
December 30, 1979/Divisional Playoffs: Miami 14 @ Pittsburgh 34 (Griese 2, Bradshaw 3)
September 22, 1985: San Francisco 34 @ LA Raiders 10 (Montana 2, Plunkett 2)
November 14, 2010: New England 39 @ Pittsburgh 26 (Brady 3, Roethlisberger 2)
October 30, 2011: New England 17 @ Pittsburgh 25 (Brady 3, Roethlisberger 2)
November 4, 2012: Pittsburgh 24 @ NY Giants 20 (Roethlisberger 2, Eli Manning 2)