Why they rank here
Before Brady, Montana was the standard for postseason quarterbacking. The engine of Bill Walsh West Coast offense, he won four Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers and was named MVP of three of them, and, remarkably, threw eleven touchdowns and zero interceptions across those four championship games. His nickname, Joe Cool, captured a preternatural calm in the biggest moments, never more famous than his 92-yard game-winning drive to beat Cincinnati in Super Bowl XXIII. Montana won two regular-season MVP awards and finished with 40,551 passing yards and 273 touchdowns, numbers that undersell him because he played in a ball-control system and battled injuries. For efficiency, accuracy, and clutch command of a possession offense, he remains a benchmark.
Career profile
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Head-to-head
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