Five worst NFL quarterbacks with Super Bowl rings
By John Buhler
5. Joe Theismann: Super Bowl XVII, Washington Redskins
Joe Theismann has been a relevant name in the football world since he was a standout quarterback at the University of Notre Dame from 1969 to 1971. He’s earned enshrinement in the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003. Theismann changed the pronunciation of his surname to rhyme with the award he contended for in the 1971 Heisman Trophy, ultimately going to Standford’s Jim Plunkett, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Oakland Raiders.
Theismann is perhaps best known for two things in the NFL: leading the Washington Redskins to two Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl XVII over the Miami Dolphins, and suffering arguably the most gruesome leg injury in NFL history on a blind side sack from the New York Giants Lawrence Taylor in 1985. That hit ended Theismann’s career while he was still in his prime.
What hurts Theismann the most in this list is that his head coach in Washington Joe Gibbs won two more Super Bowls with two other quarterbacks in Doug Williams and Mark Rypien. Though Theismann was a two-time Pro Bowler, his ability to be seamlessly replaced hurts his stock in Super Bowl winning quarterbacks. It doesn’t help that Theismann’s 1982 Redskins won that Super Bowl during a strike-shortened year. People tend to gloss over championships that come in shortened seasons.
Had Theismann not have gotten hurt in 1985 by Taylor’s crushing hit, he may have put together a more legitimate Super Bowl run and may have possibly put together a Canton-worthy career. Sure, Theismann is an all-time great in Washington, but when putting his name up to some of the very best to have won Lombardi trophies, he comes up a tad short.
Next: 4. Jeff Hostetler