Let’s end the debate: Who is the greatest QB in Steelers history?

The Steelers have a long and storied history, so who is the greatest quarterback to wear the Black and Gold? 

The Steelers are a storied and decorated franchise, winning six of the eight Super Bowls in which we have appeared.  During the decade of the 1970s, we won four Super Bowls, winning back-to-back on two separate occasions and winning the aforementioned four Super Bowls over a six-year span.

Delving into the wins and losses a little further, according to Pro-Football-Reference, the Steelers have been in existence since 1933, have won six-hundred and fifty-two regular-season games for a winning percentage of fifty-three point six percent (53.6%), and have won thirty-six postseason season games for a winning percentage of fifty-seven percent (57%).

For a franchise to have a winning record in both the regular season and the postseason is saying something.  For me, it is a testament to the consistency with which the Steelers have generally played over the decades.

That consistency must be present on both sides of the ball because you can’t usually win with only a great defense or, conversely, with only a great offense.  They go hand-in-hand.  We all know the Steelers have had some dominant defenses over the decades, but what about the offenses?

Steelers all-time best QB debate still lingers

Assuming there is a debate about who the greatest QB in our history is, I would like to offer this:  For many, the greatest QB is undoubtedly Ben Roethlisberger.  Without inundating you with statistics, ‘Big Ben’ is the all-time passing leader with over sixty-four thousand yards and boasts a sixty-four percent completion percentage.

‘Big Ben’ is a two-time Super Bowl champion, and I would say made one of, if not, the greatest throw in Super Bowl history that essentially sealed the victory for the Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII. ‘Big Ben’ won one-hundred and sixty-five games for a winning percentage of sixty-seven percent.

So, he must be the greatest QB in Steelers history, right?  Not so fast.  Like I said, for many, ‘Big Ben’ is the greatest QB to wear the Black and Gold; however, for many others, another QB is the greatest.

For those of us who were fortunate enough to have watched both ‘Big Ben’ and Terry Bradshaw play, I would say that the debate is alive and well, but since this discussion is about the greatest QB in Steelers history, let’s see how Bradshaw stacks up against ‘Big Ben’.

Again, not wanting to inundate you with a bunch of statistics, Bradshaw’s passing numbers are not that impressive compared to those of ‘Big Ben’; however, you have to account for the fact that the Steelers of the 1970s were a ‘ground and pound’ team where the passing game was almost an afterthought until the mid-to-late ’70s.

What impressed me the most about Bradshaw was this:  He was the penultimate ‘big game’ quarterback, having won fourteen post-season games for a winning percentage of seventy-three- point seven percent (73.7%).  That is incredible. Let’s not forget that Bradshaw has about the same regular-season winning percentage as ‘Big Ben’ at around sixty-seven percent.

What is also incredible is that Bradshaw is a four-time Super Bowl champ.  When the Steelers of the ’70s got to the ‘big game’, we won it all.  Yes, we had an unbelievable defense, a.k.a the Steel Curtain, but we needed someone to lead the offense and Bradshaw did just that.

Bradshaw played for fourteen seasons, but in reality, it was thirteen as the fourteenth season was cut short due to injury.  What if Bradshaw had played eighteen seasons like ‘Big Ben’?  Would his numbers have been better? Would the Steelers have won another Super Bowl?

No one knows, but we do know this:  The Steelers have had two franchise QBs in our history, one currently in the Hall of Fame, and the other will join him soon.  So, who is the greatest QB in our history? You must answer that question for yourself.