Starr, Not Brady, Remains at NFL Playoffs Summit
GREEN BAY, Wis. – Tom Brady is hailed as the greatest quarterback in NFL history. It’s impossible to argue against it. He’s won seven Super Bowls, is No. 1 in NFL history in yards, touchdowns and completions in regular-season play, and has practically lapped the field in the playoffs.
But don’t forget about Bart Starr, the leader of the Glory Years Green Bay Packers teams that won five championships in a span of seven seasons.
With the 2021 NFL playoffs set to begin on Saturday, it’s Starr who remains the all-time leader in postseason passer rating. In fashioning a 9-1 record on the strength of 15 touchdowns vs. three interceptions, Starr amassed a rating of 104.8.
Among quarterbacks with at least 120 postseason passing attempts, only five have a rating of greater than 100: Starr, Kurt Warner (102.8), Matt Ryan (100.8), Aaron Rodgers (100.5) and Patrick Mahomes (100.4). What about Brady? A distant 18th with a mark of 90.4.
Two factors weigh heavily in Starr’s favor as the greatest postseason quarterback in NFL history.
First, it’s the level of competition. To be sure, the caliber of player is better in today’s NFL. Rather, it’s competition relative to the era. There were no wild-card cupcakes to feast upon during Starr’s time, like Brady will face against the 9-8 Eagles on Sunday. During most of Starr’s career, there was one playoff game – the NFL Championship Game. It was a best-vs.-best, winner-takes-all game. It wasn’t until the 1967 season when the NFL expanded to a four-team playoff, meaning divisional playoffs, NFL Championship and Super Bowl against the winner of the upstart AFL.
Second and most importantly, it’s simply the changing of the game. The NFL has never been more quarterback-friendly. That’s evident in passer ratings, which have risen steadily over the years. In 1966, when Starr won his one and only NFL MVP, his passer rating was a then-record 105.0. The median passer rating in the 15-team league was 64.9, meaning Starr was plus-40.1 vs. his peers.
The median postseason passer rating for quarterbacks in the 1960s was 59.3. Starr’s career rating beat that by 45.5 points. Heck, of the 20 quarterbacks during that decade who threw 30 playoff passes, Starr’s passer rating was 23.3 points better than second-ranked Daryle Lamonica. Starr was plus-12 on touchdowns to interceptions. Everyone else combined was minus-36.
Brady has been magnificent but, comparing era vs. era, he doesn’t hold a handle to Starr’s dominance during a period in which receivers could be manhandled and quarterbacks weren’t afforded the security provided by today’s kinder, gentler rules. Six decades ago, quarterbacks were treated like any other player. As the late Raiders owner and coach Al Davis famously said, “The quarterback must go down and must go down hard.” Forget that. Nowadays, they can’t be hit low, they can’t be hit high, they can’t be hit late and they certainly can’t be hit hard. That Starr dominated like he did considering the brutal style of play of yesteryear is remarkable.
Of 95 quarterbacks with at least 120 playoff passing attacks, Starr’s 5-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio that trails only Alex Smith’s 7-to-1 (14 touchdowns, two interceptions) and his 8.23 yards per passing attempt ranks seventh. One of the ultimate winners in NFL history, his 9-1 record and .900 winning percentage is the best of all-time.
None of this is meant to ding Brady’s legendary resume. To win the three or four postseason games necessary to win even one Super Bowl is an incredible accomplishment. To do that seven times is an amazing feat that might never be matched. To be playing at his elite level at age 44 makes him worthy of the tired and overused GOAT moniker. While Rodgers seems poised to win his fourth MVP – one more than Brady – there’s no doubt that Brady remains the most feared player in the league.
But let’s not forget Starr, the man who was super before there was a Super Bowl, the man who dominated big moments like Brady a decade before Brady was born.
Super Bowl I Photos
