If Joe Namath played today.
JoeBanzai
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After talking about "what it's" regarding Fran Tarkenton, I got to thinking about Namath, a guy who gets ripped here mercilessly as being over rated.
His first knee injury was in 1964 as a senior in college. He had 4 knee operations while with the Jets. Joe also figures he had at least 5 concussions during his career.
How good could he have been with better knee repairs and how many more games could he have played under today's rules designed to protect the quarterback?
Not to mention the fact that the Jets began dismantling the team after winning the Super Bowl.
Bad knees, bad rules and a bad organization doomed him from the start, yet he still made it to the HOF.
I don't think he was overrated at all.
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I think he would be about the same as Bradshaw,
Solid and serviceable
What I remember about Broadway Joe is him living the vida loca prior to and after the Jets beat the Colts in the 1969 Superbowl (#3); him wearing a Mink Coat; and him doing a photo shoot wearing panty hose.
The general answer is it will most likely be more difficult for any player from past eras to compete as well in a future era(as outlined in the Tarkenton), however, there would be a wide variance among individuals.
QB's are tough to pin down. Guys like Bradhsaw and Namath were strong armed passers in a vertical game, and today's game doesn't rely on that as much, so the answers are really nuanced and most likely unknown. That is independent of the level of competition/size/strength etc.
In Basketball, Pete Maravich is a guy that would most likely thrive playing today, compared to his era. The rules and style of play now are more conducive to his strengths which were not as utilized back then. Some of the back to the basket starting centers from back then with no outside game or passing skills may not even start today. Again, that is independent of the level of competition/size/strength etc..
In baseball, the recent Billy Hamilton from the Reds might have been a full time player in 1912 and done very well by chopping the ball on the ground and beating out ground balls or seeing many of those ground ball outs go past gloves for singles(which are now scooped up routinely for an easy ground ball out). Then his blazing speed would be off and running for stolen bases every time he had the chance since CS were not as demonized then. He may have been like the other Billy Hamilton from the turn of the century.
In baseball in 1914 there were probably some sluggers who never played in the big leagues because their skill set of hitting a ball really far was not utilized back then as much. Those guys might have made a MLB team today.
Strong Arm QB's will get more shots than not. Could they do other things the offense wants now is the question. Many strong arm QB's of recent years could not. Could Namath? Who knows.
I think Tarkenton would carry to this era a little better.
One thing for certain is that those QB's would not having to worry about getting decapitated today.
He was a sharp dresser, that's for sure.
Has nothing to do with his ability to play football though.
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Interesting comparison.
Absolutely polar opposite situations.
Namath comes in the pros with a bad knee, becomes immediate starting QB.
Bradshaw is a great athlete (I read he was the second fastest runner on the team), but takes 5 (7?) years to become established #1 QB.
Namath leads team to SB in 1968 with 1 player who's in the HOF (Maynard was hurt and didn't catch a ball in the SB).
Bradshaw wins in 1974 with 7 teammates who made the HOF and 2 more that should be in.
The Jets respond to winning the SB by getting rid of their better players and quickly become a lousy team.
Pittsburgh keeps every great player they have for the next 8 years or so, winning 3 more SB's.
Namath's injury history is well-known to us all.
Bradshaw played injury free up until his last couple of years when he hurt his elbow.
No one can know for sure, but I'll say that Namath was the MUCH better player, but had too many things go wrong to be an all time great.
Bradshaw becomes, in my opinion, the most overrated QB of all time. He did have a great arm though.
BTW apparently Tarkenton was no fan of Joe when they were in NYC at the same time. Fran was a very religious guy, Joe........not so much.😁
Knee surgeries shouldnt be assumed to be successful
Wisconsin 2-6 against the SEC since 2007
They're better now than then.
I don't think JM would be able to compete in the NFL today. HST, he was great for his time when he had knees. But different time, players then, don't compare to now..........
Pantyhose sales would spike.
I agree. Tarkenton was noted for "the scramble" which seems to be required of quarterbacks today. The problem is, they stand a much greater chance of getting injured sometimes a career ending injury. Mahomes is remarkable in that he's never had that.
Tarkenton and Mahomes don't usually scramble and then run for yardage, they are usually doing it to buy time to find an open receiver.
Mahomes does make a long run occasionally, but he's pretty smart about not giving the defender much of a chance to hurt him.
Guys that run a lot generally don't stay healthy.
Better now than then, but still have a high failure rate and complication rate.
Wisconsin 2-6 against the SEC since 2007
Bradshaw had injuries throughout his career.
And I will take him over Namath any day of the week.
Terry Bradshaw was AMAZING!!
Ignore list -Basebal21
Completely different and better now. Guys would play on bad knees because the surgery was so invasive.
Now guys can get scoped and be as good as new.
Really not the point of the post. Namath had a lot of early success until health issues and horrible ownership dismantled the team.
Bradshaw was healthy his entire career and was surrounded by more HOFer's than just about any QB in the history of the NFL.
and what if jack and Jill didn’t go up that hill, or if Humpty Dumpty didn’t sit on that wall ?
And that itzy-bitzy spider too. What if he never went up that water spout ?
Joe never survives in the league today. He’d be too distracted with the way the cheerleaders dress.
I think they are both in the conversation as most overrated of all time but I think they could play in today's game and be what I said - solid and serviceable.
I'm sure nobody would have a problem replacing a Mac Jones, Taylor Heineke, Cody Pickett or Ryan Tanehehill type QB with either of those guys
Any QB who wins three or more MVP awards isn't overrated. Bradshaw is one of the best big game quarterbacks in history.
Terry Bradshaw was AMAZING!!
Ignore list -Basebal21
And I see your argument, it's definitely valid but putting all the all time greats that get mentioned together I don't put Bradshaw or Namath at the top of that list, take that any way you want or don't, I stand by my opinion as I'm sure you stand by yours
Years when Bradshaw had injuries.
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1976
1980
1982
1983
Terry Bradshaw was AMAZING!!
Ignore list -Basebal21
I put him in the top 10-12. When he retired, he held alot of passing records. How many other QB's have four SB rings?
Terry Bradshaw was AMAZING!!
Ignore list -Basebal21
That's why I said I see your argument and consider it valid.
I'm certainly not saying Bradshaw and Namath were not great QB's
Yes and no for the surgeries. Alex Smith had the best care possible and it was a disaster on his surgery. RG3 never came back either. The chances are better but not assured. Im not a Bradshaw fan either
Wisconsin 2-6 against the SEC since 2007