The inept quarterback history of the Chicago Bears has been well documented over their 100+ year span. They’ve never had a 4,000-yard passer and never had a player throw for more than 30 touchdowns in a season.
It’s truly never been a strength of this team, even when they have been winning. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that their quarterbacks who have started in a Super Bowl aren’t exactly barnburners.
A recent ranking of all the quarterbacks who have started a Super Bowl was released by Gregg Rosenthal of Around the NFL on Thursday. Rosenthal ranked all 65 quarterbacks who have started in the Big Game, including Matthew Stafford and Joe Burrow, who will square off for the title next week in Los Angeles.
As you can imagine, the top of the list features Tom Brady and continues with other players such as Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, and Brett Favre, all within the top 10. But where do Jim McMahon and Rex Grossman, the two Bears quarterbacks, fall in the rankings? They’re pretty far down the list.
McMahon comes in at No. 57, trailing behind Doug Williams, Jared Goff, and even current Bears quarterback Nick Foles. McMahon famously quarterbacked the Bears to Super Bowl XX, winning 46-10 against the New England Patriots behind a dominant defensive performance.
The Punky QB had a lengthy career, though he dealt with numerous injuries while with the Bears before bouncing around to other teams. His ranking is pretty dismal, but it’s nothing compared to Grossman’s.
The man with a cannon for an arm comes in at No. 65, good for dead last in Rosenthal’s rankings. Carried by an elite defense, Grossman helped get the Bears to Super Bowl XLI where they fell to the Indianapolis Colts 29-17.
“Grossman only had three seasons where he started more than three games (2006, ’07, 2011), but at least “Sexy Rexy” has a nickname that will live forever.” Rosenthal wrote.
Indeed, his career was short and he dealt with injuries and was benched during his brief Bears run. But he still had enough “wow” moments to nearly bring Chicago another title.
Hopefully soon, another Bears quarterback can be added to this list. Maybe they can even crack the top 50 at some point. But let’s keep it to one miracle at a time.
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