Who was better?

[Bill Brasky]

Montana or Rice?

discuss.

[STAMPY]

Montana

[The_Philster]

Montana is arguably the best QB ever to play the game. It's rare, but Johnny U has been put ahead of him by some in the past. There are no arguments against Rice being the best ever WR

[casdhf]

Neither would have been as good without the other

[L.A. Playa]

I think Rice played at a HOF level even without Montana, though Montana was considered a great leader he wasnt considered a great QB until RIce came on the scene and he didnt have the same success at KC without him. You could argue Jerry Rice made 2 QB's HOF's

[Bill Brasky]

Montana is arguably the best QB ever to play the game. It's rare, but Johnny U has been put ahead of him by some in the past. There are no arguments against Rice being the best ever WR
There's no argument about it - Montana WAS the best QB to ever play.

At the same time, I think Rice was the best WR.

He succeeded w/ Montana, Young, and even Steve Bono!

It was just fate that they played on the same squad. Those teams were unbeatable and those 2 guys made every other guy on the offense better.

[The_Philster]

There's no argument about it - Montana WAS the best QB to ever play.In your view and mine...but what I'm saying is that there have been people putting Johnny U ahead of him..not many, but some. There are no WRs that anyone puts ahead of Rice

[Philagape]

I think Rice played at a HOF level even without Montana, though Montana was considered a great leader he wasnt considered a great QB until RIce came on the scene and he didnt have the same success at KC without him. You could argue Jerry Rice made 2 QB's HOF's

Montana won 2 Super Bowls before Rice. I remember the debates about Montana vs. Marino ... plenty of people thought then that Montana was the best because he was a winner, even as Marino had his record season.

In KC Montana obviously was on the downside of his career.

[JD]

I'm Rick James *****.

[FlyingDutchman]

This question is almost impossible to answer. They both were amazing players but also made each other better. If not together, who knows how their careers might have turned out. Im sure they still would have been successful, but maybe not as. IMO its really hard to say who was better just bc they made each other. Montana was one of the most accurate and well timing QBs ever, while Rice ran smooth routes, with quick speed and soft hands. Im gonna sit on the fence on this one. (IMO, Elway was the best QB)

[Jan Reimers]

It's an apples/oranges comparison. There is little argument that Rice is the greatest receiver of all time, but it is not as universally agreed that Montana is the best QB ever. I would rate Johnny Unitas ahead of Montana, and some might throw Elway and Marino into the mix.

It can be argued that Montana was in the perfect system for his skills, and that he wouldn't have done as well with a team featuring a vertical passing game. No one, however, argues that Rice was simply the product of a system.

[Bert102176]

I think Rice cause he made a difference even without Montana

[THATHURMANATOR]

I think Rice played at a HOF level even without Montana, though Montana was considered a great leader he wasnt considered a great QB until RIce came on the scene and he didnt have the same success at KC without him. You could argue Jerry Rice made 2 QB's HOF's
I agree 100% I don't even think that Montana was the best QB ever. Give me Elway any day!

[capitolneal]

In mho Montana was way overrated he was in the PERFECT system his athletism is questionable but he was asked only to make quick reads and he had a GREAT CAST
hands down Jerry Rice is the GOAT in football period, he has no peers I will be lucky to see any of his records broken

[ddaryl]

Jerry Rice wins this one.

Montana was awesome, but never lit it up.

Rice was a game breaker who succesfully transferred his success across multiple QB's.

However both deserve the recognition they have received

[Jan Reimers]

Joe Montana is the greatest QB to ever run a West Coast offense. Jerry Rice is the greatest receiver ever, period.

[FlyingDutchman]

Joe Montana is the greatest QB to ever run a West Coast offense. Jerry Rice is the greatest receiver ever, period.
Ill agree to that....Montana was amazing but IMO not thee best. But your statement is right on I think. Im still kinda young (24) so I dont know about some of the older QBs like Unitas, Namath and other greats, but IMO Jon Elway was the best QB ever (at least that Ive ever seen). How do you older fellas think Elway stacks up against those older greats??

[Bill Brasky]

In mho Montana was way overrated he was in the PERFECT system his athletism is questionable but he was asked only to make quick reads and he had a GREAT CAST hands down Jerry Rice is the GOAT in football period, he has no peers I will be lucky to see any of his records broken So I guess Notre Dame was the "perfect" system for him too. He also didn't do too badly in KC.



Montana was awesome, but never lit it up.

Rice was a game breaker who succesfully transferred his success across multiple QB's.

However both deserve the recognition they have received Montana never lit it up? Did you watch any games he played in. How many times did he go over 350 or 400 yards... counting playoff games and Super Bowls?


Ill agree to that....Montana was amazing but IMO not thee best. But your statement is right on I think. Im still kinda young (24) so I dont know about some of the older QBs like Unitas, Namath and other greats, but IMO Jon Elway was the best QB ever (at least that Ive ever seen). How do you older fellas think Elway stacks up against those older greats?? OH MY GOD... No way in a frozen hell would Joe Namath stand up to Joe Montana.

BTW: take away Terrell Davis and John Elway never wins a super bowl... as evident by the first 3 he was blown out in w/o a decent RB to support him.

Oh yeah, remember towards the end of Montana's career when he played for KC... the monday night game where Elway took the Broncos down field to give them the lead w/ a little over 1 min left... Montana takes the field, takes KC all the way down in less than a min and wins the game... totally showed up the guy.

[L.A. Playa]

pure QB though probably hated here just arm and making every throw Dan Marino is probably the best QB of all time and you cant forget about Elway and also right now Peyton Manning is climbing. Monatan was great but as previously stated a system QB the other 3 QB's mentioned can play in any system

[Jan Reimers]

Ill agree to that....Montana was amazing but IMO not thee best. But your statement is right on I think. Im still kinda young (24) so I dont know about some of the older QBs like Unitas, Namath and other greats, but IMO Jon Elway was the best QB ever (at least that Ive ever seen). How do you older fellas think Elway stacks up against those older greats??
I like Unitas as the best of all time, followed by Elway, Marino and Montana.

[FlyingDutchman]

So I guess Notre Dame was the "perfect" system for him too. He also didn't do too badly in KC.

Montana never lit it up? Did you watch any games he played in. How many times did he go over 350 or 400 yards... counting playoff games and Super Bowls?

OH MY GOD... No way in a frozen hell would Joe Namath stand up to Joe Montana.

BTW: take away Terrell Davis and John Elway never wins a super bowl... as evident by the first 3 he was blown out in w/o a decent RB to support him.

Oh yeah, remember towards the end of Montana's career when he played for KC... the monday night game where Elway took the Broncos down field to give them the lead w/ a little over 1 min left... Montana takes the field, takes KC all the way down in less than a min and wins the game... totally showed up the guy.I never compared Namath to Montana. I simply asked how the those older greats stack up bc i wasnt alive when they played. And your little tid bit on Elway needs those runningbacks to win, well didnt we just cover the same thing on Montana needing Rice? Both great in their own persepective, but having someone that is also great makes you better. Give me a break man, any championship teams have a great player with a supporting cast. Ive never seen 1 man win a super bowl. As far as raw talent, Elway was the best QB ive ever seen. Amazing arm strength, accuracy, scrambling abilities, the ability to throw on a dime on the run, toughness, and IMO the best quarterback at the 2 minute drill ever. And Montana showing up Elway?? More like he showed up his defense. Montana is amazing too, so why does that take away from Elway? Just bc he won the game? Two HOF QBs playing, one of them has to win. Montana also killed Elway in the Super bowl, does that take away from Elway? Your right, Elway was blown out bc he had no supporting cast in the first couple of super bowls, while Montana was loaded with the best reciever of all time. So why does that make Montana so much better? Does that mean Montana would have never won without rice? Bc he never did win again without Rice. You cant say Elway would have never won with those backs, bc you can say that about a lot of people. (Brady would have never won without his coaches) It still doesnt mean their amazing in their own right.....

[Bill Brasky]

I never compared Namath to Montana. I simply asked how the those older greats stack up bc i wasnt alive when they played. And your little tid bit on Elway needs those runningbacks to win, well didnt we just cover the same thing on Montana needing Rice? Both great in their own persepective, but having someone that is also great makes you better. Give me a break man, any championship teams have a great player with a supporting cast. Ive never seen 1 man win a super bowl. As far as raw talent, Elway was the best QB ive ever seen. Amazing arm strength, accuracy, scrambling abilities, the ability to throw on a dime on the run, toughness, and IMO the best quarterback at the 2 minute drill ever. And Montana showing up Elway?? More like he showed up his defense. Montana is amazing too, so why does that take away from Elway? Just bc he won the game? Two HOF QBs playing, one of them has to win. Montana also killed Elway in the Super bowl, does that take away from Elway? Your right, Elway was blown out bc he had no supporting cast in the first couple of super bowls, while Montana was loaded with the best reciever of all time. So why does that make Montana so much better? Does that mean Montana would have never won without rice? Bc he never did win again without Rice. You cant say Elway would have never won with those backs, bc you can say that about a lot of people. (Brady would have never won without his coaches) It still doesnt mean their amazing in their own right..... Ok, well Montana 'needing' Rice is a joke, considering Montana won a Super Bowl before Rice was even in the NFL.

Secondly... I don't put much stock into Elway's claim to fame being "the greatest comeback QB of all time". Big deal, that just tells me he didn't play well enough for 3 QTR's to win and always had to bail himself out at the end. Sure, it is a great thing to say about him, but at the same time great QB's don't need to constantly put together 4th QTR drives at the last minute to win, great QB's put teams away early. If we all went to our jobs and were constantly getting things done at the last minute that wouldn't be considered greatness!

You want to put stock into Elway by saying his great ability to come back late in games is what made him great, well Montana showed him and his defense up so why does that take away from Montana? Montana also lead one of the greatest drives in Super Bowl history, better than "The Drive" Elway generated, but that is JMO.

Montana beat Elway in the Super Bowl. Does that take away from Elway? Hell yes! This whole argument is about who's better, who knows how to win, and Montana constantly owned Elway throughout his career... if you can't beat somebody, how can you possibly be better than them?

Elway would have never won without those backs is fact! He lost 3 super bowls until he had a decent running game... in fact, his teams were blown out of the water in those SB's.

One can also turn to Elway's stats during the 1980's, where he was statistically behind every major QB during that time including Jim Kelly, Boomer Esiason, Warren Moon... it wasn't until Elway was given a running game that he was able to win Super Bowls.

And finally, everybody is saying it's Montana supporting cast, mainly Rice, that helped make him great.

Look at the supporting cast he had in 1981/82 when he won his first Super Bowl:

QB - Montana
RB - Ricky Payton/Earl Cooper
WR - Dwight Clark
WR - Freddie Solomon
TE - Charlie Young

not exactly the most explosive offense of all time, and he took them to a Super Bowl win and a 13-3 regular season record.

[FlyingDutchman]

Dude...so just bc Elway was good at coming back means he sucked bc he shouldnt have been in that position to begin with? That is a joke. Sorry he didnt blow every team out. All Im sayin is he could put a drive together when needed, and IMO that makes him great. Elway would have never won is that a fact? More like your opinion, which after some of your points, carries little value to me. Montana beat Elway in the Super bowl...so what...Does that mean Jeff Hostetler is better than Jim Kelly? Or Mark freakin Rypen? Absolutely not. There are more factors that go into a game than 1 person. IMO Barry Sanders was the best RB of all time, but bc he lost so much he sucks right?

[finsrclowns]

Gotta go with rice. Especially pilof with baked chicken.

[FlyingDutchman]

Gotta go with rice. Especially pilof with baked chicken.

mmmmmmm....thats my favorite:drool2:

[Bill Brasky]

More like your opinion, which after some of your points, carries little value to me.
:rofl:

Nowhere did I say "John Elway sucks".

I did, however, say that Joe Montana was, is, and always will be better than him. But, according to your "opinion", my "opinion" is wrong... somehow yours carries more merit ontop of factual evidence, none of which you've mentioned.

You keep saying "more factors go into a game than one person", yet you constantly try to ride the fact that Elway himself had so many great comebacks... if he was so great, he could have carried that team to 5 super bowl rings, which he didn't.

[capitolneal]

So I guess Notre Dame was the "perfect" system for him too. He also didn't do too badly in KC.



He did't light it up at ND and KC ran the exact same west coast offense... as I recall didn't Elvis go to the Pro bowl in that offensive scheme? He is a product of the system just like Tommy Chang in Hawii (not to that extent)
but hell is he even on a roster Perfect system and the Perfect guy for the system

[Mike13]

Neither would have been as good without the other
I am gonna have to dissagree with you on that Montana didnt make Rice what he is or vice versa. They were both incredible from the start.

[FlyingDutchman]

:rofl:

Nowhere did I say "John Elway sucks".

I did, however, say that Joe Montana was, is, and always will be better than him. But, according to your "opinion", my "opinion" is wrong... somehow yours carries more merit ontop of factual evidence, none of which you've mentioned.

You keep saying "more factors go into a game than one person", yet you constantly try to ride the fact that Elway himself had so many great comebacks... if he was so great, he could have carried that team to 5 super bowl rings, which he didn't.I never said you said that. You are the one who carries his opinion as fact. You pissed all over my opinion saying there is no way Elway is better bc he simply lost to Montana in Super Bowls. Now your saying bc he didnt win 5 super bowls he doesnt belong with Montana. Give me a break. So what is Kelly than? What arent you getting about what i write? "if he was so great, he could have carried that team to 5 super bowl rings, which he didn't" Give me a freaking break. You said Elway would have never won without TD, and thats a fact. Is it though? Is it? Sounds more like an opinion. Not denying all the great things Montana has done, but hes also in a similar situation that Brady is in. AS FAR AS RAW QUARTERBACKING TALENT AND ALL AROUND TALENT, IMO ELWAY IS THE BEST. What dont you understand about what i keep saying. Im not asking who won more super bowls and all that crap. If you go back to my first post, youll understand you went way off of what i was origainally talking about. Your the one gettin all upset when someone has a different opinion, just because you think Montana is the best hands down like you said, doesnt mean he is. I know Montana didnt NEED Rice, but it didnt hurt. You said Elway wouldnt have done so well without TD, well why not the same with Montana Rice? Just bc he won one WO Rice? Jesus dont totally discard peoples opinions bc of your lame one. Im sure there are a lot of people who will agree that Elway is better, and some that won't. Your definition of what makes a player better is different from mine. You dont need 5 rings to be considered the greatest (ex. Barry Sanders).

[L.A. Playa]

no Qb dominated like Dan Marino he never had WR's that would be a starter on any other team and still was a threat all by himself, he also never had a running game. Elway had Terell Davis, Montana had Roger Craig and Jerry Rice. Marino really all by himself kept Miami a contender and a threat all those years he played so to me Marino is the greates QB of all time and Rice is the best Player of all time the only player close to Rice would be Jim Brown, if he didnt retire young all of his records would probably still stand today

[Philagape]

Montana was awesome, but never lit it up.


Joe Montana .....

-- Had seven 400-yard games in his career, tied for second behind Marino (13).
-- Once had five 300-yard games in a row (record is six) and twice had four in a row.
-- Had 39 300-yard games, and an NFL-record six in the postseason.
-- Led 31 fourth-quarter comebacks.
-- Was named Super Bowl MVP three times.
-- Led the league in completion % five times. Only Len Dawson (in the AFL) and Sammy Baugh had more.
-- At the time of his retirement, he ranked fourth in career passing yardage (40,551 yards), attempts (5,391), and passing touchdowns (273). His 3,409 completions ranked third all-time, and his career passer rating of 92.3 was second all-time.

[The_Philster]

No way is Marino the best ever QB...best passer...yeah...but there's so much more to QBing than passing stats