The Super Bowl is a quarterback’s time to shine.
A signal caller has been named Super Bowl’s Most Valuable Player 33 times throughout the history of the NFL’s showpiece game. That’s more than every other position combined – wide receivers come a distant second with nine MVPs.
But there is also no bigger stage upon which a quarterback can fall short. Failure to perform at a Super Bowl could see a quarterback characterised as not having what it takes to win when it matters most, a sticky label to shed.
For example, despite leading the New York Giants to the Super Bowl in 2001, Kerry Collins’ abject display in a 33-7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens – in which he threw for just 112 yards and four interceptions – meant he was not long for the Big Apple.
Collins was cut in 2003 and the Giants traded up get Eli Manning, who would go on to win two Super Bowl MVPs, in the following year’s draft.
The quarterback Collins ultimately replaced after joining the Oakland Raiders, Rich Gannon, had a Super Bowl stinker of his own in 2002.
He threw a whopping five interceptions – although he did also muster two touchdowns – in a 48-21 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
But the worst quarterback performance ever in a Super Bowl belongs to Craig Morton of the Denver Broncos.
At Super Bowl XII in 1978, Morton completed just four passes for a total of only 39 yards.
In fact, he completed just as many passes to the opposition as to his own team, throwing four interceptions against a legendary Dallas Cowboys Defense. He was dropped from the line-up in the second half and the Broncos lost 27-10.
That was Morton’s second Super Bowl appearance.
His first, against the Baltimore Ravens at Super Bowl V, had not gone much better. On that occasion, while playing for the Cowboys, he threw three interceptions in another defeat.
The following season, Morton was replaced as the starting quarterback in Dallas by Roger Staubach and the Cowboys went on to win their first-ever Super Bowl.
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