(Newswire.net — August 21, 2020) — A veteran quarterback, Super Bowls on his resume, moving to a new home late in his NFL career. It’s been done many times previously.
Rarely has it been done successfully, however.
Tom Brady is seeking to buck that trend. After 19 seasons and six Super Bowl wins, Brady, 43, left the New England Patriots during the offseason and signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The achievement Brady is seeking to accomplish – winning a Super Bowl as starting quarterback with two different teams – has been tried by many but done successfully only one previous time.
While not looking upon it as an impossible feat, in the Las Vegas NFL odds, Brady isn’t receiving the favorite’s love. The Buccaneers are listed at odds of +1000 to win this season’s Super Bowl. That places them as the co-fourth choice in this betting market.
Let’s look at the others who’ve traversed this journey before Brady and see how it turned out for them.
Joe Namath
Broadway Joe guided the New York Jets to victory in Super Bowl III. He guaranteed victory before the big game and delivered on his promise in a 16-7 win over the Baltimore Colts.
His knees battered from years of abuse, Namath was 34 when the Los Angeles Rams dealt for him in 1977. He started just four games that season, going 2-2.
John Unitas
Beaten two years earlier by Namath’s Jets, Johnny U started as the Colts edged the Dallas Cowboys 16-13 in Super Bowl V.
In 1973, the San Diego Chargers traded to acquire Unitas. He was 40 at the time and clearly past his prime. Unitas went 1-3 as a starter and gave way to future Hall of Famer Dan Fouts.
Ken Stabler
The Snake led the Oakland Raiders to victory in Super Bowl VI. In Oakland, Stabler’s Raiders often butted heads with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Four years following his Super Bowl success, the Raiders and Houston Oilers swapped starting QBs, Dan Pastorini coming to Oakland in exchange for Stabler. The Oilers thought Stabler could get them past the Steelers, who’d beaten Houston two years running in the AFC Championship Game, but it was not to be.
Joe Montana
A four-time Super Bowl winner with the San Francisco 49ers and a three-time Super Bowl MVP, Montana was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs in 1993.
The Chiefs won the division title for the first time in 22 years but they lost in the AFC Championship Game to the Buffalo Bills.
Brett Favre
Favre led the Green Bay Packers to a victory in Super Bowl XXXI. In 2008, he was traded to the New York Jets.
After one unsuccessful season in New York, Favre joined Green Bay’s NFC North rivals the Minnesota Vikings. He led them to the 2009 NFC Championship Game but the Vikes lost to the New Orleans Saints.
Kurt Warner
Warner was the darling of pro football, coming from the Arena League to lead the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl XXXIV victory.
Nine years later, Warner guided the Arizona Cardinals to their first Super Bowl appearance. The Cards lost Super Bowl XLIII 27-23 to the Steelers.
Joe Flacco
Flacco led the Baltimore Ravens to a Super Bowl XLVII triumph over the San Francisco 49ers, earning game MVP honors in the process. With Baltimore, he set an NFL record by winning seven road playoff games. The Ravens reached three AFC Championship Games with Flacco under center.
In 2019, Flacco was traded to the Denver Broncos. A neck injury in Week 9 of the campaign ended his season.
Peyton Manning
Peyton Manning is the only QB to take two different franchises to Super Bowl titles. Photo by: Jeffrey Beall (flickr).
It perhaps gnaws away at Brady’s inner psyche to know that the only QB to be a starter for a Super Bowl champion with two different teams is the man considered his greatest contemporary rival at the position.
Manning took the Indianapolis Colts to a pair of Super Bowl games, winning in Super Bowl XLI. Moving to the Broncos, he also guided Denver to two Super Bowls. In Super Bowl L, Manning’s farewell game, they beat the Carolina Panthers 24-10.