49ers Legend Joe Montana Names Dolphins Icon Dan Marino as Best QB in NFL History
Paul Kasabian
Football: Legends of Candlestick: Former San Francisco 49ers QB Joe Montana (16) with former Miami Dolphins QB Dan Marino (13) before flag football game at Candlestick Park.
San Francisco, CA 7/12/2014
CREDIT: Brad Mangin (Photo by Brad Mangin /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
(Set Number: X158459 TK1 )
Set Number: X158459 TK1
Four-time Super Bowl champion Joe Montana believes that Dan Marino is the best quarterback to ever play football, per comments made in an exclusive interview with Keith Nelson of Men's Health.
"He had a quick release. I had to step into a lot of things to get enough [force] on the ball," Montana said about Marino. "He had the perfect torque of his upper body and strength to deliver the ball quickly at a fast release with accuracy."
Nelson clarified the difference between greatest and best in this case.
"...However, there's a difference between 'greatest' and 'best,' and Montana thinks the latter distinction doesn't belong to him," Nelson wrote. "The title of 'greatest QB' typically refers to career achievements, whereas 'best QB' refers to individual talent."
Marino doesn't own the career accomplishments that other quarterbacks do, but there's no denying his tremendous talent.
He had one of the best and strongest arms in the game and dominated in an era where defenses could take more physical liberties on offensive players, specifically signal-callers.
Nowadays, quarterbacks are far more protected, a luxury that Marino, Montana and others did not benefit from seeing.
"Put Marino into today's game where he gets free release...and his receivers, holy cow, weren't very big," Montana told Nelson. "Now these guys are 6'4," 6'5." I think [Marino] is probably one of the most unsung heroes of the game. People don't talk enough about him or realize the numbers that he put up during the times that he put them up."
Marino led the NFL in passing yards five times and touchdowns on three occasions. His 48 touchdowns in 1984 stood as a single-season record until Tom Brady broke it in 2007 (50). That was since broken by Peyton Manning (55 in 2013).
Marino is still seventh on the all-time passing touchdown list (420), and he's No. 1 among players who never suited up in the 21st century.
He may never have won a Super Bowl, but Marino was a sensational talent who clearly has the respect of one of the best to ever play the game.
Montana nailed it, point blank
