Yes, Dan Marino is #1 and Bob Griese is #2. But did Tua Tagovailoa crack the Top 5? And who’s your fighter: Ryan Tannehill, Jay Fiedler, Tua or someone else?
Thank you for reminding less historically-astute readers that when Dan Marino burst onto the scene in 1983-1984, that he was, as Jason Kirk recently put it in the Shutdown Fullcast podcast, "on some ancient alien shit."
There was a time I genuinely thought Marino's records would never be broken. On the interweb it's said "NFL defenses weren't ready for that offense", but when Marino exploded in 1983 he was running the same offense David Woodley was running the week before. It was Dan Marino himself that NFL defenses weren't ready for (including the 85 Bears).
Don Shula somehow dodges the blame for Marino's long decline. Marino always kept the Dolphins competitive enough to disincline Miami from pulling the trigger on the legendary Don even when the game was passing him by (cf Belichick). By the time Shula retired in 96, Marino was 35 with bad knees and a torn achilles. Imagine if Marino had been in the K-Gun in 1990.....
“The Most Important Backup Quarterbacks In NFL History” would make a great article. Perhaps a larger set of articles about great and one-hit wonder backup quarterbacks. I can’t recall if that’s been written before or recently at the moment.
For me, Marino represents the beginning of the modern NFL, and the point when I personally switched to paying attention to the league.
I've been a CFL-fan since the age of 3, watching games with my grandmother. I scoffed at NFL games when they first started getting TV coverage in my area. Why are grown men playing football on these tiny, children-sized fields? 4 downs to get 10 yards? They can just run the ball every down, they don't even need to be really good runs.
Then my local TV station switched from carrying a steady diet of "3 yards and a cloud of dust" Pittsburgh and Washington games, and started broadcasting Marino's Dolphins every week. Now this was football that was worth watching. I'm a defense-first guy and still cheer for teams forcing punts, but Marino's offence, that was an offence that made a defense earn their stops.
I'd go Ken Anderson 1975 for beginning of modern NFL (anything from mid-70s on is modern to me). Kudos for arguing for CFL superiority though - last guy I heard arguing that was Rocket Ismail...
Nah, not arguing for the CFL's superiority. Just saying it was different back in the 70s and early 80s and it took a while for me to warm up to the NFL game. Marino helped a lot.
No comparing the two leagues since the TV era. Practice squad gigs in the NFL are better than CFL roster spots now. Wasn't always so, but the talent gap is monstrous these days.
The other thing about Dan Marino: he was probably the most popular player in the NFL in the '80s. I remember huge amounts Dolphins "fans" in my Pennsylvania town growing up, and I'm sure that wasn't unique to me.
It's funny you mention Fiedler and the Eagles; whenever I hear his name, I think of one afternoon when Jody McDonald advocated for him getting that shot by repeating the phrase "just say Jay". Amazing the things that we remember 30 years later.
I would have put Tua at 3 because I kept feeling disappointed in Tannehill. He seemed to have potential but couldn't put everything together. Understanding everything going on around him has softened my view of him. Thanks
Tebow was some combination of Griese & Fielder, but because he put in religion instead of playcalling/Dartmouth, you helped run him out of the league 😋
Thank you for reminding less historically-astute readers that when Dan Marino burst onto the scene in 1983-1984, that he was, as Jason Kirk recently put it in the Shutdown Fullcast podcast, "on some ancient alien shit."
Looks like someone at the NFL's already reading TDZ, Mike, judging by how quickly those videos got DCMA'd!
They were insta-DCMA'd. Gonna figure out workarounds.
That list gets bleak in hurry. Totally agree on Tannehill-he was very badly served by Miami, as to be fair, was every QB between 2001 and 2021.
There was a time I genuinely thought Marino's records would never be broken. On the interweb it's said "NFL defenses weren't ready for that offense", but when Marino exploded in 1983 he was running the same offense David Woodley was running the week before. It was Dan Marino himself that NFL defenses weren't ready for (including the 85 Bears).
Don Shula somehow dodges the blame for Marino's long decline. Marino always kept the Dolphins competitive enough to disincline Miami from pulling the trigger on the legendary Don even when the game was passing him by (cf Belichick). By the time Shula retired in 96, Marino was 35 with bad knees and a torn achilles. Imagine if Marino had been in the K-Gun in 1990.....
Imqgine Marino in Andy Reid's offense...
“The Most Important Backup Quarterbacks In NFL History” would make a great article. Perhaps a larger set of articles about great and one-hit wonder backup quarterbacks. I can’t recall if that’s been written before or recently at the moment.
Morrall. Hostetler. Foles. Strock. It becomes blurry when some of these backups become challengers for the starting job. Or just take it.
When I think of backup quarterbacks, this is one that comes to mind. https://youtu.be/S1z0FAZ4RIs?si=pJTyEnVvuoXHT1kj
And here’s the other one. https://youtu.be/lC5Z5DOTIHI?si=3bys7uVT2y302GNP
For me, Marino represents the beginning of the modern NFL, and the point when I personally switched to paying attention to the league.
I've been a CFL-fan since the age of 3, watching games with my grandmother. I scoffed at NFL games when they first started getting TV coverage in my area. Why are grown men playing football on these tiny, children-sized fields? 4 downs to get 10 yards? They can just run the ball every down, they don't even need to be really good runs.
Then my local TV station switched from carrying a steady diet of "3 yards and a cloud of dust" Pittsburgh and Washington games, and started broadcasting Marino's Dolphins every week. Now this was football that was worth watching. I'm a defense-first guy and still cheer for teams forcing punts, but Marino's offence, that was an offence that made a defense earn their stops.
I'd go Ken Anderson 1975 for beginning of modern NFL (anything from mid-70s on is modern to me). Kudos for arguing for CFL superiority though - last guy I heard arguing that was Rocket Ismail...
Nah, not arguing for the CFL's superiority. Just saying it was different back in the 70s and early 80s and it took a while for me to warm up to the NFL game. Marino helped a lot.
No comparing the two leagues since the TV era. Practice squad gigs in the NFL are better than CFL roster spots now. Wasn't always so, but the talent gap is monstrous these days.
Dan Marino is the first player I can remember my dad hating when I was a kid. Before Tom Brady he was the guy that constantly broke the Jets heart.
The other thing about Dan Marino: he was probably the most popular player in the NFL in the '80s. I remember huge amounts Dolphins "fans" in my Pennsylvania town growing up, and I'm sure that wasn't unique to me.
It's funny you mention Fiedler and the Eagles; whenever I hear his name, I think of one afternoon when Jody McDonald advocated for him getting that shot by repeating the phrase "just say Jay". Amazing the things that we remember 30 years later.
I gotta tell Jody about that next time I am on his show!
Marino was a Pennsylvania boy, wasn't he?
That's true! Not my part of PA though.
I would have put Tua at 3 because I kept feeling disappointed in Tannehill. He seemed to have potential but couldn't put everything together. Understanding everything going on around him has softened my view of him. Thanks
Tebow was some combination of Griese & Fielder, but because he put in religion instead of playcalling/Dartmouth, you helped run him out of the league 😋
Great list and the memories it’s shaking lose r Awesome! Hello YouTube 1985 AFC Championship Game! 🏈