Most football pundits look at one thing first when reviewing a player’s career – whether or not they won a Super Bowl. While it truly is a silly method of reviewing a player’s career, it remains a giant criticism of greats like Dan Marino, Barry Sanders, Andre Reed, and most recently LaDainian Tomlinson. This is always a reason that a player like Marino is left out of the conversation of the QB of all time, when anyone who watched Marino’s career knows that the lack of a championship is far from his fault.
Some players, particularly quarterbacks, had long and successful runs with a team, leading them to the Playoffs multiple times, but for one reason or another, could not get over the hump. Some of these quarterbacks are still viewed favorably by their team’s fan base, while others are cursed for never being able to get to the Promised Land. This list will rank quarterbacks who were able to lead their team to a successful run, just didn’t get to complete the dream.
With all this in mind, I’m ranking the top 10 Quarterback/Team combos that never won a Super Bowl title.
10. Ron Jaworski / Eagles
(10 seasons, 4 Playoff appearances, 1 Super Bowl appearance)
Before Donovan McNabb, the only Eagles Super Bowl appearance came with Ron Jaworski taking the snaps. “Jaws” led the Eagles to four straight Playoff appearances from 1978-1981, with his lone Pro Bowl selection coming in 1980, the same year the Eagles were the NFC Champs. Jaworski’s biggest accomplishment in the Super Bowl was making Raiders LB Rod Martin a piece of history, by throwing a Super Bowl record 3 interceptions to the Raiders defender.
9. Rich Gannon / Raiders
(5 seasons, 3 Playoff appearances, 1 Super Bowl appearance)
Gannon and the Raiders are probably the biggest, “if only” runs in NFL history. Gannon and the Raiders lost the 2000 AFC Championship Game to Baltimore after Tony Siragusa pancaked Gannon out of the game. The Raiders were screwed out of the 2001 Playoffs by the “Tuck Rule.” And the Raiders Super Bowl appearance against Tampa Bay may have turned out much differently if not for the distraction of All-Pro Barrett Robbins having a severe mental breakdown in the days leading up to the game. In 2003, Gannon tore his labrum and the Raiders finished 4-12, starting the Raiders slide into their worst stretch in franchise history.
8. Mark Brunell / Jaguars
(8 seasons, 4 Playoff appearances, 0 Super Bowl appearances)
It’s easy to forget that Brunell took over as the quarterback of an expansion franchise given the success that Jacksonville had under Brunell. After a 4-12 Inaugural season, the Jaguars rattled off four straight Playoff appearances with a regular season record of 45-19 over that span. Jaguars fans will always remember Brunell’s great performance in a 30-27 victory in Denver in 1996, taking the Jags all the way to the AFC Championship game. Brunell and Jacksonville would also get the AFC title game in 1999 after a 62-7 thrashing of Miami. But Jacksonville fell to Tennessee in what would be Brunell’s final Playoff game with the Jags. Brunell did get a Super Bowl ring in his career, but that came in 2009 as the backup QB and holder for the Saints.
7. Bernie Kosar / Browns
(7 seasons, 5 Playoff appearances, 0 Super Bowl appearances)
Kosar led the Browns to the franchise’s best stretch since the Jim Brown era, 4 straight postseason appearances from 1985-1989. He was named to the 1987 Pro Bowl, his only selection, which was the season that the Browns fell an Earnest Byner fumble away from defeating the Broncos and getting to the Super Bowl. That came a year after the Browns dropped the 1986 AFC title game to Denver and John Elway led the Broncos on “The Drive.” Kosar’s last run with the Browns in 1989 also ended with conference championship loss to the Broncos, but to the relief of Browns fans, there was no historical event, just a 37-21 defeat.
6. Dan Fouts / Chargers
(14 seasons, 4 Playoff appearances, 0 Super Bowl appearances)
Fouts took over the Chargers QB job from another very good quarterback, John Hadl. The Chargers were not a great team throughout Fouts’s tenure, but from 1979-1982 the Chargers posted a 39-18 record and made the postseason each year. Under Don Coryell, Fouts and the Chargers put up great statistics, which earned Fouts 6 Pro Bowls and a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But San Diego was just 3-4 in the postseason during that stretch. The best shot came in a 7-point loss at home to the Raiders in 1980 in the AFC title game. However they returned to the AFC title game the following season and were beaten by 20 in frigid Cincinnati.
5. Warren Moon / Oilers
(10 seasons, 7 Playoff appearances, 0 Super Bowl appearances)
Moon and the Oilers went 3-13, 5-11 and 5-11 in his first three seasons. In his next seven with Houston, they reached the Playoffs each year. Sadly for Moon, he may be remembered most for the Oilers collapse to Buffalo in the greatest ever comeback. Moon made 9 Pro Bowls and was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but the Oilers went just 3-7 in the Playoffs under his lead.
4. Donovan McNabb / Eagles
(10 seasons, 8 Playoff Apperances, 1 Super Bowl appearance)
In McNabb’s 10 seasons as the Eagles starting QB from 2000-2009, the Eagles had just one season below .500. He led them to 8 Playoff appearances (where had a winning record in the postseason), and a stretch from 2000-2004 where the Eagles went a whopping 59-21. Despite all his success, and 6 Pro Bowl appearances, he’s mostly viewed a QB that is criticized for not getting his team a Lombardi Trophy. The only point that McNabb haters have is that the offense did come up short in NFC Championship appearances. They scored just 6 in a loss to the Rams in 2001, only 10 in a 2002 against Tampa Bay’s great defense, and a measly 3 against Carolina in 2003. In the Eagles 4th straight NFC Championship Game in 2004, the Eagles finally got to a Super Bowl, by defeating Atlanta, but McNabb threw 3 INTs in the Super Bowl against the Patriots, as the Eagles came up short yet again (in his defense, McNabb did throw for 3 TDs and 357 yards). McNabb’s Eagles made it to the NFC Championship Game one more time, in 2008, but fell short in a 32-25 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
3. Dan Marino / Miami Dolphins
(15 seasons, 10 playoff appearances, 1 Super Bowl appearance)
Dan Marino is probably the best quarterback on this list, and the best QB never to win the Super Bowl. He is only third due to the fact that this list is ranking the QB and the team together, and others teams had higher levels of success. Marino got to his only Super Bowl in his fantastic sophomore season, in which he threw for a record 5,084 yards, which lasted until Drew Brees passed the mark in 2011. Unforunately for Miami, they met a great 49ers team that was led by possibly the greatest QB in history, Joe Montana. Marino was named to 9 Pro Bowls, and Miami would make the Playoffs 10 times total in Marino’s tenure, including 6 out of Marino’s final 8 seasons (1 of which Marino was injured and Scott Mitchell was the QB most of the season). Marino has turned into the posterboy for great players who did not win a Super Bowl, but it was through absolutely no fault of his own as Miami’s defense allowed an average of 34.5 points in the 10 season-ending losses.
2. Fran Tarkenton / Vikings
(7 seasons, 6 playoff appearances, 3 Super Bowl appearaces)
Tarkenton was such a successful and exciting quarterback, he actually could have made this list twice as he had a 5-year stretch with the Giants in which he was selected to 4 Pro Bowls, but the Giants best record during his tenure was 9-5. In Tarkenton’s 2nd go around with the Vikings from 1972-1978 (he was there from 1961-1966 before his time in New York), the Vikings missed the postseason only once, and they were NFC Champions 3 times. Sadly, Tarkenton and the “Purple People Eaters” Vikings ran into excellent Miami, Pittsburgh and Oakland teams, and his most memorable pass in a Super Bowl was likely the one that was intercepted by fellow Hall-of-Famer Willie Brown, who ran it back for an Oakland TD.
1. Jim Kelly / Buffalo Bills
(11 seasons, 8 Playoff appearances, 4 Super Bowl appearances)
Kelly gets into the top spot for having the most depressing time falling short of the Super Bowl. The Bills suffered from being the top team in the inferior conference, but winning 4 straight AFC Championships is still highly impressive. The Bills best shot at the title came when Scott Norwood missed his infamous FG attempt in XXV. The Bills were blown out in the next 3 Super Bowls, lending more credence to the idea that the AFC simply was not up to the NFC’s level in the early 90s. The lack of a title didn’t prevent the 5-time Pro Bowler from making the Hall of Fame.
Honorable Mentions:
Jim Hart / Cardinals
Jim Hart had a long run as QB for the Cardinals, but misses this list because the Cardinals were competitive only for one stretch. From 1974-1977 Hart was a Pro Bowl QB each season. The Cardinals went 38-18 over that stretch under famed offensive mastermind Don Coryell, who will be mentioned again on this list. The Cardinals won the NFC East in both ’74 and ’75, but were unable to win a single game in the postseason during this short stretch of success for the then St. Louis Cardinals. Hart remains the Cardinals franchise leader in yards (34,639) and touchdowns (209).
Ken Anderson / Bengals
Anderson led the Bengals to the Playoffs four times in his 13 seasons. They lost to the 49ers 26-21 in Super Bowl XVI in Anderson’s only AFC Champion squad. 1981 is also the only year the 4-time Pro Bowl QB won a postseason game.
Matt Hasselbeck / Seahawks
Seattle could also make the case that Dave Krieg belongs on this list. But Hasselbeck led Seattle to the Playoffs 6 times in his 9 seasons as the lead man in Seattle, while Krieg made it 4 times in his 9 years. Hasselbeck also led Seattle to its only Super Bowl, a terribly officiated Super Bowl which gave Bill Cowher his lone Lombardi Trophy.
Drew Bledsoe / Patriots
This one deserves a bit of an asterisk, because technically Drew Bledsoe did start the 2001 season as the starting QB before being knocked out and replaced by Tom Brady. Bledsoe lost in his only Super Bowl as a starter in Brett Favre’s only Super Bowl triumph.
Randall Cunningham / Eagles
Cunningham led the Eagles to 4 Playoff appearances in his 6 seasons in which he was Philadelphia’s leading passer. Oddly enough however, the greatest team he did not get to a Super Bowl was the 1998 Vikings. The poor Philadelphia faithful can point to a good deal of moderate success from the Eagles, but no Super Bowl titles.
Steve McNair / Titans
The late McNair led the Titans within a yard of overtime in a Super Bowl, but as close as he was, he never took the Titans to the top.
Current QB/Team combos that could end up on this list:
Matt Ryan’s Falcons, who have had little trouble making the Playoffs, but have yet to win a game.
Tony Romo’s Cowboys, who have seen great stats, but not a ton of wins from Romo.
Mark Sanchez’s Jets, although the thing holding them back might be the Sanchez himself.
Joe Flacco’s Ravens, who have been close to reaching the Super Bowl year after year.
Michael Vick’s Eagles, because we all know if history holds true, Philadelphia is doomed for failure.
