Football’s Top 25 Quarterbacks of All-Time

UPDATE- Originally published December 31, 2009. 

* Active players in italics

1. Joe Montana- Joe Cool was an 8-time Pro Bowl selection, led the NFC in passer five times, and won two NFL MVP honors. He is the greatest quarterback ever, though, because he combined the regular season brilliance of Manning (#2) or Marino (#4) with the postseason excellence of Brady (#3) or Bradshaw (#20). Montana captured four Super Bowl titles (winning MVP in three of them) and propelled his teams to 31 fourth quarter come-from-behind victories over his illustrious career. He compiled 11 touchdown passes with no interceptions and a 127.8 passer rating in the four Super Bowl appearances—that is the definition of clutch. Montana finished with a 117-47 record as a starter, a 92.3 passer rating, and 273 touchdown passes.

2. Peyton Manning- The Colts signal caller is in position to retire as the greatest of all-time, and it is very difficult to place him below anyone. Manning has thrown for 4,000 yards in eleven of his thirteen seasons; he is a 11-time Pro Bowler and is the only player to win four NFL MVP awards. His 121.1 passer rating in 2004 is the highest in history. Manning has tossed at least 25 touchdown passes in every year of his career, and he is 3^rd all-time in completions, touchdown passes and passing yards, and 6^th in passer rating. In the 2006 AFC Championship Game, the Colts trailed the New England Patriots 34-30 with 2:17 left in the final quarter. Manning drove his team 80 yards in one minute to win the game. He would capture his first title two weeks later in Super Bowl XLI.

3. Tom Brady- The Montana of his generation, Brady won three Super Bowls by the age of 27. He is a two-time Super Bowl MVP (XXXVI and XXXVIII) and he holds the record for the most touchdown passes in a single season (50 in 2007). A sixth round draft pick, Brady once quarterbacked the Patriots to 21 consecutive regular season wins over two seasons and has led the AFC in passing yards twice and touchdown passes three times. He has a career passer rating of 96.1 (3rd all-time) and retains one of highest winning percentages for a starting quarterback in history. In the playoffs, Brady has thrown 38 touchdowns and 20 interceptions, winning 16 of his 22 starts.

What AU Means to Me

The following article appeared in print on December 7 in The Eagle.

This will be my final column as an opinion writer for The Eagle. In this space, I’ve argued for drug liberalization, urban renewal projects, and a greater focus on our long-term fiscal health. I discussed the importance of living within one’s means, lamented our dysfunctional political system, and criticized our incoherent foreign policy.

What I never wrote much about was American University, and for that, I’m sorry. I know that I wasn’t your first, second, or even third destination when you wanted to read a view of the political scene. I also apologize to those who were looking for more partisanship and found my writing muddled in the middle. Actually, I take that back. I can’t stand fringe politics, Left or Right. Ideological polarization is tearing this country apart. Regardless, if you ever stumbled across my column, I do hope that you found my thoughts insightful, temperate, and, above all, reasonable.

However, I want to devote my parting words not to opinion or policy, but to everyone and everything that made American University special during my years here. When I submit my senior thesis next week, I will conclude a journey that began in August 2007. Less than three and a half years later, I can proudly say that I wouldn’t trade any of it for the world.

So here’s to you, AU:

To the Letts third floor of 2007-2008, where I spent countless nights in the south side lounge and started friendships that will last a lifetime.

To Letts’ sixth floor sky lounge, where residents know not to enter if the lights are off and the two couches are pushed together. Trust me, stay away.

To Centennial Hall, where sophomores go to pretend that they are moving up in the world and where I fell in love.

To the four knuckleheads that I chose as roommates for the last few years, thanks for all the nonsense and the endless laughter.

To TDR, where I’m an endangered species: a senior in a sea of freshmen and sophomores. To the most underrated cafeteria on campus, thank you for feeding me.

The Bravery Gap

The majority of the Democrats and Republicans that populate this city’s institutions are career professionals and public servants.  For the most part, their expertise has served us well. Yet my worry is that maybe, somewhere, there is another Abraham Lincoln. Someone we would mock; someone who didn’t go to an Ivy League school; someone who made it on his or her own.

Like Lincoln, they could change everything. They could right the wrongs and redraw America’s path forward. Realistically, even Lincoln couldn’t make it today, and that saddens me deeply. Lincoln’s story is the story of this nation and what it should be—but isn’t anymore. There will be no more Lincolns because our political system punishes those who are willing to speak the truth and make the tough decisions. Who’s brave enough to put tomorrow before today?

Families across the country have spent the past two years altering their spending habits. Some have taken on another job, others have downsized to smaller homes. People are doing more with less, as they shop for the best deals and cut entertainment costs. There’s a growing feeling that the same sort of waist trimming should be applied here in Washington.

To close the annual budget deficit and reduce the national debt, shared sacrifice is a necessity. It’s ludicrous to think that we could have continued our tired tradition of more spending, more borrowing, and less taxes without paying a price. The cruelty of making promises we can’t keep is immeasurable.

Bowles, left, and Simpson are marked men in Washington. Courtesy of Politico

The co-chairs of President Obama’s National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, former Republican Senator Alan Simpson and Clinton White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles, recently released their proposal for addressing our fiscal mess. Their blueprint, which is separate from the commission’s larger report due out December 1, calls for spending caps on major domestic and defense programs. They want a simplified tax code that reduces overall rates and closes loopholes. On health care, they emphasize malpractice reform and long-term cost containment. Retirement pensions for federal workers would be slashed and the Social Security age would be raised to achieve the program’s solvency. Everybody would take a hit.