Right, and he was stopped from getting there every other time.
Some of the best rarely if ever got there. And many a decent but not that particularly great qb did, like Trent Dilfer.
I know you're very analytical.
To me that's half the fun. The next quarter is arguing with people who are fans first and rational second. Then, of course, there's the actual game.
He'd have never made the commercial he did, if there was anything to that Spanish inquisition-like silliness.
Never understimate the shrewd and guiding advice of a better half...or his promo team. But, again, it never impacted my opinion of his talent. If someone gave me a choice and he was available I'd be thinking about it.
And as Jerry pointed out, two of those games were not even complete contests, SF far outmatched both Miami and Denver---the Denver game was worse than the Chicago-NE SBXX drubbing.
The Giant's games shouldn't have been close. But then, there's a reason why a team beats a conference to make it to the SB.
The first team SF beat in the SB, without Rice, was Cincinnati. The Bengals had the #2 offense in the league that year and won one fewer games than SF. SF was roughly tied for 8th. Joe was MVP.
The second SB was against
Miami. The Fins were 14-2 that year and had the highest rated offense in the league. The best defense? SF. Miami led 10-7 at the end of the first quarter and that was the highest scoring opening quarter in SB history. Different league and rules back then. Joe's MVP winning 300+ yards was a SB record.
SF's third SB, the first one with Rice, was a Bengals rematch. Cin brought a 12-4 record and the number one offense to the contest. SF (10-6) came in with the 6th best defense. Another close game.
Joe's last SB was against that Denver team. Denver had the 7th best offense that year and the 1st at defense. That's no patsy. MVP: Joe Montana. That offense was so potent (and the defense was 3rd, edging Cleveland by a point) that Denver went in a 12 pt dog. But then, Brady's team went into its first Giant's SB a 12 pt favorite. So the "no contest" cries of some are largely the product of hindsight. You get two teams that good you better play the game first. And the MVP: Joe.
Opinions. :idunno: I'm going to take your advice and quit bothering about this.
Don't let it bother you. Have fun with it. If it isn't fun don't do it. That's the best advice I can give anyone. To me, arguing about this is a great deal of fun. I try to approach it in that spirit.
He's 39 and healthy and who knows how long he's got.
I hope he plays well into his 40s and at a high level, goes out on his own terms. But at that age you're always one injury away from a swift decline.
And plus, it looks like Rodgers is back on track, and that makes two exceptional QBs on the gridiron this season to root for, for us QB fans.
Don't leave Brees out, or Rivers. Great captains with leaky ships. And there's another generation trying to get feet in the door. A very good time to be an NFL fan.
