Typically when a Super Bowl is played, legacies are on the
line.
Super Bowl 49 is no different. The player with the most to
gain? The quarterback for the AFC champions, Tom Brady. Opponent? The Seattle
Seahawks and the Legion of Boom.
If that sounds familiar, it should. It was the same scene
last year when the AFC champions Denver Broncos were led by their quarterback
Peyton Manning and he had the chance to become the first quarterback to lead
two franchises to NFL supremacy, which along with all of his records would put
him in a class of his own. To say he came up short is an understatement. The
43-8 drubbing was just an embarrassment.
Tom Brady hopes to have a different result. With a win here,
Brady would have four super bowl trophies to his name.
FOUR.
Only two guys, Terry Bradshaw and Brady’s childhood idol Joe
Montana, have won four times at the grandest stage. But Brady is different;
he’s been to the top stage six times, more than any quarterback ever.
Brady already has the NFL record for most playoff wins in
history with 20. To put into perspective, that is more playoff wins he has
alone than 21 of the 32 franchises in the NFL have in their entire history. Tom
Brady also holds the record for most passing yards in playoff history with 7,017
and most passing touchdowns with 49.
Brady’s dominance through the playoffs has been nothing
short of spectacular. Though he has had a few bad games, mostly to the
Baltimore Ravens, his good far outweighs his bad. He’s had clutch performances,
such as Super Bowl 36 and 38 when he led his team to the game-winning points on
the final drive. He has had the statistical dominance; such as in 2011 against
the Broncos when he tied an NFL record with six touchdown passes, including
five in the first half. The man has shown it all.
But for some reason, there are some people that hold Brady’s
two super bowl losses against him in elevating him to the greatest of all time
status. That’s not fair to Brady.
Now this is assuming he wins on Sunday, Brady would have the
same amount of rings as Montana, widely regarded as the best ever, but would
have two losses to the Giants while Montana never lost in the super bowl. By
saying this, people are penalizing Brady for WINNING. The reason Brady has two
losses while still having the same amount of rings as Montana is because Brady
went further in the playoffs all the way to the Super Bowl two times while
Montana, other than the four seasons he won it all, was ousted earlier in the
playoffs so he never had the opportunity to lose a Super Bowl on top of his
four wins.
Also, the way one loses has an impact. Peyton Manning got
blown out by a record margin in one loss and threw a game-ending pick 6 in the
other. That’s not a good look when you can point straight at the quarterback
for the loss. With Brady, it’s different.
When people remember Brady’s first Super Bowl loss, most
people will point to the luckiest play in NFL history: The helmet catch when
the ball stuck to David Tyree’s helmet after an unreal escape by Eli Manning.
When people remember Brady’s second Super Bowl loss, there
will be a clear image of Wes Welker dropping a pass that hit him in both of his
hands. Neither time can you really pin it on Brady.
Many young fans won’t remember, but Montana nearly didn’t go
unblemished. Unlike Brady, luck was on his side instead of against him. In
1988, when Montana led the legendary drive to beat the Cincinnati Bengals, he
almost cost them the game earlier. Montana threw a pass in the middle of the
end zone that landed right in the hands of Bengals defensive back Lewis
Billups. Billups straight up dropped the pass on his own, with no impact from
any 49er. The 49ers, who were trailing 13-6 at that point, may not have
recovered from that. Instead, Montana threw a touchdown to Super Bowl MVP Jerry
Rice on the very next play.
You think Bradshaw got his four without some luck on his
side? Not so fast.
In Super Bowl 13, Roger Staubach stepped up in the pocket on
a 3rd down in the third quarter and fired a pass to a WIDE OPEN Jackie
Smith. The Hall-of-Fame tight end dropped the ball and the Cowboys had to
settle for a field goal, losing four points on the drive. How much did the
Steelers win by on that night? That’s right, four points, 35-31.
The point is, nobody gets to greatness without a little
luck. Heck, even Tom Brady had it when he was winning. Remember the “Tuck Rule”
in 2001 that propelled the Patriots to a Super Bowl win that year? Remember
John Kasay, the Panthers kicker who kicked the kickoff out of bounds with a little
over a minute left in the Super Bowl in 2003? That field position gave Brady a
short field to set up Adam Vinateri for the game-winner.
If Brady wins his fourth ring on Sunday, his four wins and
an additional two appearances should be a plus for him, not something held
against him. And him doing it without the like of Jerry Rice or Lynn Swann just
drives the point home even more.
The Brady vs. Manning is over. The Brady vs. Montana debate
is now in full force.
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