Three Super Bowl defeats The Denver Broncos great discovered new methods to win. Surprisingly, it took two titles at the conclusion of his career to validate his status and lessen the blow of three Super Bowl defeats. With a 148-82-1 record after 16 seasons, Elway retired as the winningest starting quarterback in NFL history. His three Super Bowl losses are a franchise record that will likely never be broken.
He started his career 3-0 by defeating the San Francisco 49ers, Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins in the first three games of the 1997 season. However, he lost his next four starts including three straight to end the season. The Broncos finished 10-6 under Elway and lost to New England in the first round of the playoffs. 1998 saw more success as Elway led the team to its first Super Bowl victory over Atlanta. In the game, he threw for three touchdowns and no interceptions while rushing for another score. He lost again when Buffalo defeated him and Tom Brady by a final score of 29-21.
Elway's second Super Bowl loss came in 1999 against Green Bay. He was responsible for five touchdowns (four passing, one rushing) but also had two interceptions. The Broncos were able to beat Pittsburgh 30-17 in the rematch of the previous year's championship game but fell to New York Giants 21-19 in the title game. Elway ended the season with three more victories before being beaten by Brady yet again in the 2000 finale.
After retiring as a player, Elway became the Broncos' general manager and executive vice president of football operations. During his tenure, the Broncos won four division titles, two AFC Championships, and Super Bowl 50, making Elway a three-time Super Bowl Champion—two as a player and one as an entrepreneur. He is also the only person who has played in both the NFL and AFL playoffs every year since they began.
Elway was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the first round (fifth overall) of the 1969 American Football League draft. He played quarterback for the Broncos from 1969 to 1977, when he was named the team's full-time starter at age 26. Over that span, he led them to a 49-game win streak that is still tied for the longest in NFL history. The Broncos ended up winning the last three Super Bowls they played in (XXXI, XXXII, and 50).
As a player, Elway was renowned for his passing ability; he completed 63.4 percent of his passes during his Hall of Fame career. His best season came in 1975 when he led the league with 4,643 yards passing without any interceptions. That same year, he also ran for 644 yards and nine touchdowns.
During his time with the Broncos, Elway also served as a mentor to future Pro Football Hall of Famer Terrell Davis.
John Elway (born June 28, 1960 in Port Angeles, Washington, USA) is a former American collegiate and professional football quarterback who is widely regarded as one of the best of all time. He led the National Football League (NFL) Denver Broncos to two Super Bowl victories (1998 and 1999). At the age of 39, Elway became the second-youngest player (behind Terry Bradshaw) to start at quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in a playoff game.
Elway played college football for Stanford University from 1979 to 1980. As a freshman, he appeared in 10 games for the Cardinal before being sidelined by an elbow injury. After returning in 1979, he took over as the starter for the final six games of the season and was named the MVP of the Pacific-10 Conference.
In 1981, Elway led the nation in passing yardage (4,748 yards) and touchdowns (57 scores), while also rushing for 901 yards and 11 more scores. The only team to beat him during this season was USC's Mark Dickson. Elway was drafted first overall by the Denver Broncos after his senior year.
He spent his entire 16-year career with the Broncos, playing at a high level until he was 39 years old. In 1998, when he was the oldest player on the roster, Elway helped the Broncos win their first Super Bowl title.
What, two Super Bowls? Manning had an impressive 18-year career as the Colts' (1998–2011) and Denver Broncos' (2012–15) starting quarterback, winning two Super Bowls and defeating each of the current 32 NFL organizations. He was named the MVP of both games.
Manning was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft. Under head coach Tony Dungy, he helped the team reach the AFC Championship Game every season from 1999 to 2008, including back-to-back Super Bowl victories in February 2000 and 2001. In 2009, he lost his starting job to rookie quarterback Andrew Luck and was traded to the Denver Broncos later that year.
In Denver, Manning led the Broncos to their first Super Bowl victory after they defeated the Baltimore Ravens 34-32 in 2015. He played the entire game and threw for three touchdowns without an interception. He finished his NFL career with more than 60,000 yards passing and 55 touchdowns against only 12 interceptions.
After retiring from the NFL, Manning returned to Indianapolis in 2015 as his successor as Colt quarterback. However, he switched teams again a year later when new Colts head coach Frank Reich hired him as his offensive coordinator.
Dan Marino is number one. Dan Marino has a 147-93 record as a starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins over 17 seasons, although he never won a Super Bowl. Marino amassed 61,361 total passing yards while flinging 420 touchdowns and finished with an incredible 86.4 quarterback rating. He was also selected to eleven Pro Bowls during his career.
Marino's lack of success in winning a Super Bowl is probably his greatest weakness as a player. Although he was very successful throughout his career, he just couldn't win it all when it mattered most. He lost three NFC Championship Games during his time in Miami, including two straight years from 1997 to 1998 when the Dolphins missed the playoffs entirely.
In addition to not winning any Super Bowls, there is another mark that Marino falls short of: Tom Brady does not have a single playoff victory over Marino. The two quarterbacks met in the postseason eight times, with Brady going undefeated against Marino.
However, it must be noted that Brady had a better supporting cast around him during some of those games. For example, in 2004, when Brady defeated the San Diego Chargers by a score of 39-38 in the AFC Championship Game, Tony Gonzalez was named the Most Valuable Player after catching 14 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns.
Montana has never been defeated in a Super Bowl. Joe Montana had a perfect 4-for-4 in Super Bowl appearances during his career. He also became the only player in Super Bowl history to win the MVP award three times. Montana completed 83-of-122 throws for 1,142 yards and 11 touchdowns in four Super Bowl triumphs. He also had two interceptions returned for scores by Seattle's Richard Sherman in the 49ers' 34-32 loss last month.
In other words, Montana is undefeated!
Joe Montana has won the most prestigious trophy in football twice: In 1991, he led the 49ers to their first NFL title in 18 years; two years later, he helped the San Francisco team win its third championship in four years. His record is 24-10 in the postseason, including 3-1 in Super Bowls. He was named MVP both times he appeared in the game.
So, it can be said with confidence that Montana is an all-time great of our sport and he still holds several records after appearing in three Super Bowls. It's safe to say that he knows how to win at this stage of his life. Furthermore, the fact that he is still one of the best quarterbacks of all time shows how much talent he had when he came out of college.
It's hard to believe that it was 20 years ago this February that Montana arrived in Santa Clara to replace Steve Young as the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers.
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