We’re closing in on two weeks since the Saints beat the Colts in the Super Bowl and my body is slowly adjusting to the next six months without football.

One of the things I keep reading in the days since what I thought was a pretty exciting game between two very good teams and two great quarterbacks is that the interception Peyton Manning threw on his way to the game-tying touchdown drive somehow cheapens his legacy as a star quarterback.

I’ll grant you, Manning has, at times, struggled in big games. But to say throwing a pick-six against New Orleans somehow detracts from him being one of the top quarterbacks of all-time is ridiculous.

First of all, this wasn’t an all-time great Colts team all season long. Sure, they were 14-0 before the coaches pulled the starters against New York. But Indianapolis won eight games by one score or less. Other than a four game stretch of dominance from their third game to their sixth game, when they won games by 21, 17, 22 and 36 points, the Colts generally played competitive games this year. This was a very, very good team, but any belief that this was a dominant bunch was misguided.

Second, the team wasn’t full strength all season. Sure, guys like Pierre Garcon, Austin Collie and Antoine Bethea stepped up during the regular season. But when you lose guys like Anthony Gonzalez and Bob Sanders for almost the entire season it’s eventually going to hurt. And then when your top wideout, Reggie Wayne, hurts his knee heading into the big game it’s going to make it that much tougher.

This was illustrated at least twice during the game – once when Wayne had the chance to catch a touchdown to bring the Colts within a touchdown in the waning seconds of the game and previous to that on the big Tracy Porter interception. Yes, on the pick everyone is criticizing Manning for throwing Wayne does little to help his quarterback out. He got outmuscled to the spot and didn’t do enough to turn into a defender when it was clear Porter had position on him.

That’s not to say Manning is without fault. He wasn’t his typically great self. But let’s also give the Saints some credit. This beleaguered defense was flawed. But throughout the playoffs they showed up when it mattered. After giving up a 70 yard touchdown run to Tim Hightower on the first offensive play of the divisional playoff game against Arizona, the Saints ass-whipped the Cardinals 45-7 the rest of the way – knocking Kurt Warner out of the game in the process.

The following week the Saints were by most statistics outplayed by the Minnesota Vikings. But five turnovers and numerous crushing shots that made Brett Favre’s body match his jersey color later New Orleans outlasted the Purple, claiming the NFC crown in overtime.

Finally, if that’s not enough, let’s look at the history of the Super Bowl. My brother wrote a post during the week leading up to the game asking if Manning vs Drew Brees was the best quarterback matchup in the league’s Super Bowl history. While that remains an arguable point, further analysis of those who have played in the game indicates that just 10 quarterbacks have ever won more than one Super Bowl.

So Manning missed an opportunity to join that crowd. But think about that – over the course of 44 seasons just 10 quarterbacks have won more than one Super Bowl.  And only 28 quarterbacks have ever been at the helm of Super Bowl winning teams. At anywhere from 26 to 32 teams for most of those 44 seasons that’s somewhere well north of 1300 quarterbacks who have started in the NFL during the timespan. Just 10 have won the big game more than once. And just 28 have ever won the Lombardi Trophy.

So sure. Peyton Manning isn’t perfect. He’s had his flaws in big games at times. But without getting into the all-time great numbers he is comfortably on his way to posting for his career he is still comfortably among the greats in terms of Super Bowl output, even with adding the loss to the Saints to his resume.

He’s a 10 time Pro Bowl selection and a five time first-team all pro. Despite the occasional flaws I’d take him at the top of any list of quarterbacks I was putting together if it came down to choosing someone to win the big game. So his legacy remains strong as far as I’m concerned.

Regular Zoneblitz commenter Tony Parslow dropped us a note last night, saying he heard a great discussion topic on ESPN–is Sunday’s match-up between Peyton Manning and Drew Brees the best quarterback matchup in Super Bowl history?

A few other matchups jump to my mind as possibilities–Montana vs. Marino in Super Bowl XIX, Montana vs. Elway in Super Bowl XXIV, and Elway vs. Favre in Super Bowl XXXII–but I’m not sure if any of those match-ups would have been considered those QBs facing each other in their prime.

And of course, my Super Bowl history really only dates back to the Montana vs. Ken Anderson game of Super Bowl XVI…so maybe some research is warranted:

Super Bowl I: Bart Starr vs. Len Dawson

Super Bowl II:  Starr vs. Daryle Lamonica

Super Bowl III: Joe Namath vs. Earl Morrall

Super Bowl IV: Dawson vs. Joe Kapp

Super Bowl V: Johnny Unitas vs. Craig Morton

Super Bowl VI: Roger Staubach vs. Bob Griese

Super Bowl VII: Griese vs. Billy Kilmer

Super Bowl VIII: Griese vs. Fran Tarkenton

Super Bowl IX: Terry Bradshaw vs. Tarkenton

Super Bowl X: Bradshaw vs. Staubach

Super Bowl XI: Kenny Stabler vs. Tarkenton

Super Bowl XII: Staubach vs. Morton

Super Bowl XIII: Bradshaw vs. Staubach

Super Bowl XIV: Bradshaw vs. Vince Ferragamo

Super Bowl XV: Jim Plunkett vs. Ron Jaworski

Super Bowl XVI: Montana vs. Anderson

Super Bowl XVII: Joe Theismann vs. David Woodley

Super Bowl XVIII: Theismann vs. Plunkett

Super Bowl XIX: Montana vs. Dan Marino

Super Bowl XX: Jim McMahon vs. Tony Eason

Super Bowl XXI: Phil Simms vs. John Elway

Super Bowl XXII: Doug Williams vs. Elway

Super Bowl XXIII: Montana vs. Boomer Esiason

Super Bowl XXIV: Montana vs. Elway

Super Bowl XXV: Jeff Hostetler vs. Jim Kelly

Super Bowl XXVI: Mark Rypien vs. Kelly

Super Bowl XXVII: Troy Aikman vs. Kelly

Super Bowl XXVIII: Aikman vs. Kelly

Super Bowl XXIX: Steve Young vs. Stan Humphries

Super Bowl XXX: Aikman vs. Neil O’Donnell

Super Bowl XXXI: Brett Favre vs. Drew Bledsoe

Super Bowl XXXII: Elway vs. Favre

Super Bowl XXXIII: Elway vs. Chris Chandler

Super Bowl XXXIV: Kurt Warner vs. Steve McNair

Super Bowl XXXV: Trent Dilfer vs. Kerry Collins

Super Bowl XXXVI: Tom Brady vs. Warner

Super Bowl XXXVII: Brad Johnson vs. Rich Gannon

Super Bowl XXXVIII: Brady vs. Jake Delhomme

Super Bowl XXXIX: Brady vs. Donovan McNabb

Super Bowl XL: Ben Roethlisberger vs. Matt Hasselbeck

Super Bowl XLI: Peyton Manning vs. Rex Grossman

Super Bowl XLII: Eli Manning vs. Brady

Super Bowl XLIII: Roethlisberger vs. Warner

Super Bowl XLIV: Peyton Manning vs. Drew Brees

Looking back I think the Bradshaw vs. Tarkenton and Bradshaw vs. Staubach matchups might be near the top of the list as well–although none of those QB really fit the mold of today’s gunsligners like Manning & Brees.

So what does Zoneblitz Nation think of this year’s matchup?  Best ever, or too earlyto tell?  And, on the flip side–has there been a worse matchup than Trent Dilfer vs. Kerry Collins?

With the end of the decade approaching, a lot of people are putting out top 10 lists for the decade–so of course we figured, why should we be any different?

Rather than talk more about hall of fame level players, though, we decided to take a different approach–who were the top draft busts for the decade?

The criteria we tried to stick to for defining a bust was this:

• Had to be a first round pick–it sucks when later round picks don’t pan out, but they don’t have the expectations of first round guys.
• Not playing for a lengthy period of time due to football related injuries doesn’t necessarily equal a bust (think Ki-Jana Carter or David Pollack).
• However, injury due to a guy being an idiot can qualify him for bust status (Andre Smith’s getting fat, holding out, Charles Rogers possibly making his bones more brittle by smoking dope, etc).
• Obviously guys from this year’s (and maybe last year’s) aren’t fully qualified busts–but first round guys should always contribute something in their first season, second at worst, so they can be on the list.
• The rest of the first round does influence things—so if there are a bunch of busts early (like in 2002), it may be less likely that a guy is a bust later in the round, because there was probably quality to pick from…

With that, here’s our list:

10. Reggie Bush, New Orleans Saints, 2006 2nd overall - Bush has hardly been a pure bust in the sense of contribution to the team–he’s a decent receiver out of the backfield, and has done some good returning punts.  But given the level of hype around Bush coming out of USC (and the baggage surrounding questions about whether or not he received inappropriate benefits–not to mention the fact that he is or was dating Kim Kardashian), and he makes our top 10 list.  I didn’t have a blog to talk about it at the time, but I knew even then that Texans made the right choice in taking Mario Williams.

9. Wendell Bryant, Arizona Cardinals, 2002 12th overall – Bryant disappeared from the league after just three seasons, totaling 39 tackles and 1.5 sack in his three seasons.  I don’t remember the details, but I remember thinking he was going to be a bust coming out of college, and he lived up to my expectations.  He joined the Las Vegas Locomotives of the UFL in 2009, but ended up being placed on injured reserve.

8. David Carr, Houston Texans, 2002 1st overall – Sometimes it isn’t (totally) a players fault that he’s a bust–Carr is a classic example.  He ended up starting his first season with the Texans (the team’s first in the league), before they had any semblance of an offensive line.  He got hit hard and often during his five years with the team, including an NFL record 76 times his rookie year–enough to make any quarterback gun shy.  But, the Texans still deserve some criticism for drafting a mid-major QB who needed a changed throwing motion first overall–especially with a guy like Julius Peppers on the board…although if they had gone Peppers, they may have taken Reggie Bush in 2006…or they could have taken Joey Harrington (3rd overall) who also could have made this list (we decided to leave him off simply because he played for the Lions).

7. Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, Tennessee Titans, 2005 6th overall – Sometimes guys who even were fairly talented and productive can be draft busts.  Jones had all the talent in the world–good cover corner, great kick returner–but his lifestyle choices got him suspended for all of 2007 and part of 2008, and eventually he was cut even by the Dallas Cowboys.  At one point he agreed to a contract with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League, but they decided against bringing him on board after he mistakenly called it the United Football League (which showed no interest in signing Jones).  Had he been a 3rd round pick, he was worth the risk–as the 6th overall pick, he’s just another bust.

6. Troy Williamson, Minnesota Vikings, 2005 7th overall – Back to back picks in the 2005 draft make the list.  The Vikings fell in love with Williamson’s speed after he ran a 4.32 40-yard dash at the combine, and used the pick they got from the Oakland Raiders in the trade for Randy Moss to grab him.  They should have paid more attention to his hands (and/or eyes).  Williamson struggled to get on the field, and struggled to catch passes once he got there, dropping at least 11 passes during the 2006 season.  Even after working with Nike to correct vision problems, he struggled in 2007, dropping a 72-yard touchdown pass that hit him in the hands in the season finale, and a critical first down pass later in the same game.  He was traded to the Jaguars for a 6th round pick after the season, and while he is still on the roster, his most notable accomplishment with them is challenging Vikings head coach to a fight when the two teams met in 2008 (a game Williamson missed due to injury).

5. Charles Rogers, Detroit Lions, 2003 2nd overall – It’s tough putting any Lions on the draft bust list, considering the overall ineptitude of the organization during the decade.  But Rogers warrants mention, simply for the level from which he fell, and reason for doing so.  He started his career strong, with 22 catches, 243 yards and three touchdowns in his first five games–then he broke his collarbone, knocking him out for the year.  On the third play of his second season, he suffered another broken collarbone–then was suspended for games during the 2005 season for his third violation of the NFL Drug policy.  After returning, he played in only nine games, starting three and being declared inactive for four others.  Before the 2006 season, the Lions released him, and he failed to catch on with another team.  In August of 2009, he admitted that he smoked pot regularly, which many have speculated led to his bones becoming more brittle, leading to the broken collarbones.  He tried to catch on with an NFL or CFL team in 2009, but failed to do so.

4. Jamal Reynolds, Green Bay Packers, 2001 10th overall – Reynolds was the 2000 Lombardi Award winner coming out of Florida State, and was a finalist for the Defensive Player of the Year award after setting career highs with 12 sacks and 58 tackles as a senior.  In his three year NFL career, he managed less than a third of those totals.  He played in 18 total games for the Packers, starting none, and accumulated 18 total tackles and 3 sacks.  The Packers traded him to the Colts after the 2003 season, but the trade was voided when he failed the Colts’ physical exam–the Packers released him 10 days later.  He was picked up by the Cleveland Browns, who had a terrible defensive line at the time–and they cut him before the beginning of the season.  He hasn’t been heard from since, other than making lists like this (he even made Charles Robinson’s worst all-time first round picks list in 2007).  While he ranks high on our list, we have to admit that it is impressive that taking such a colossal bust didn’t actually hurt the Packers terribly, as they made the playoffs each of Reynolds three seasons, including two NFC North division crowns.  By 2005, though, picks like Reynolds and Ahmad Carroll (25th overall in 2004) led to a 4-12 record.

3. David Terrell, Chicago Bears, 2001 8th overall – Terrell’s Wikipedia page sums up his career quite nicely–his career highlights and awards section simply says ‘N/A,’ while his Pro Career description is only four lines long, and starts talking about him being cut by the Bears on the first line.  His numbers might not be the worst of the first round busts, even–he started 29 of 54 games played, had 128 catches for 1,602 yards and 9 TD in his career–but in thinking back to his time with the Bears, I don’t remember anyone every saying anything positive about him, even Bears fans I know.  Williamson may push for this spot if he manages to not play any more NFL games, but for now, I consider Terrell the biggest WR bust of the decade.

2. Vernon Gholston, New York Jets, 2008 6th overall – This one is just for regular commenter Brad, who defended Gholston before this season.  It’s actually somewhat impressive that he’s made it this far up the list, given that it’s just his second season–but I think his production level, given where he was picked, combined with the pre-draft hype, warrants it.  Before the 2008 draft, all of the publications I read basically said the same thing–he disappeared at times for Ohio State, but he showed up at the combine and put up phenomenal numbers–basically, he was the classic Workout Warrior (aka, Mike Mamula v2.0).  Yet, most mock drafts I saw had him going to the Jets at #6–and despite the warning signs, they grabbed him.  So far, they’ve paid him over $10 million for 24 tackles and zero sacks, despite starting three games earlier this season when Calvin Pace was suspended.  Worst of all, he seems satisfied with his role on special teams–where he’s made just as many tackles as kicker Jay Feely.  It’s not a guarantee that Gholston will stay this high on the list–or even stay on the list, if he finally shows up next decade–but after two seasons, he has to be considered a huge disappointment for the Jets.

1. JaMarcus Russell, Oakland Raiders, 2007 1st overall - Joe Thomas, Adrian Peterson, Patrick Willis, Marshawn Lynch, Darrelle Revis, Michael Griffin, Jon Beason–that’s the list of first round picks from 2007 that have made the Pro Bowl.  All of them taken after the Raiders took Russell.  Bruce Gradkowski, Charlie Frye–both quarterbacks that earned starts over Russell during the 2009 season.  Heck, there were rumors that J.P. Losman was going to get a start, just days after they signed him after he led the Las Vegas Locomotives to the inaugural UFL Championship–and while he didn’t start, Losman did make an appearance in the game.  Russell’s career statistics are abysmal–51.8 completion percentage, 18-22 TD-to-INT ratio, 24 fumbles (14 lost), and a 65.4 career QB rating.  As with Gholston, it’s not a guarantee that Russell will be on this list when we look back in 3-5 years–but firmly entrenched right now, and he’s got a long way to go to get out–especially with Al Davis adding players like Darius Heyward-Bey in the first round (a player who may end up on this list himself one day).

Dishonorable mention:

Harrington, Ryan Sims, Mike Williams (OL), Mike Williams (WR), Peter Warrick, Travis Taylor, Rashard Anderson, R. Jay Soward, Willie Middlebrooks, Jerome McDougle, Michael Haynes, Carroll, Losman, Matt Leinart, Gaines Adams, Justin Herrill…we actually had about 20-25 other guys that made our consideration list.

Teams

So which teams had the worst luck (or simply did the worst job) utilizing first round picks during the first decade of the centry?

Well, the Detroit Lions jump to mind, with Harrington and their WR trio of Rogers (bust), Roy Williams (decent) and Calvin Johnson (solid).  The Raiders have to be in the mix as well, with Russell, Michael Huff and Heyward-Bey.  There could be a case made for the Bears as well–they hit with Urlacher at the beginning of the decade, but followed up with Terrell, Mar Colombo, Michael Haynes and Rex Grossman, and added Cedric Benson later in the decade (although he appears to have redeemed himself in Cincinnati).  The Cleveland Browns could also be a strong contender, with Courtney Brown, William Green, and questions still being raised about Brady Quinn–although quite a few picks that frustrated the Browns (Gerard Warren, Jeff Faine, Kellen Winslow Jr., Braylon Edwards) have done ok with new teams.

One team that might surprise some folks on our worst teams list would be the Green Bay Packers, who seem to do well despite their first round selections in many cases–Reynolds was a bust, Javon Walker only had one stellar season for the Pack before whining his way out of town, Carroll was a bust, A.J. Hawk seems to be considered by many a disappointment as a #5 overall pick, and Justin Harrell hasn’t shown anything yet.

What Do You Think?

You’ve seen our list–who do you think were the biggest busts of the decade?  Which teams did the worst?

Conversely, who were some of the best value picks in the first round for the decade?  Later round values?  Non-drafted free agent values?  Which teams did the best at finding gems?  We’re considering this list as well, and will work something out, if there is interest…

Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Last night, the team worth the second least in the NFL hosted the team that’s worth the most.

Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, decided it would be a good time to open his mouth regarding the upcoming labor negotiations with the players union, under the guise of encouraging the people of Minnesota to deliver a new stadium to Zygi Wilf and the Vikings.  As usual, Jones was wrong.

Jones is one of at least a few owners that apparently want to see the salary cap AND revenue sharing eliminated from the NFL.  As fans of the league, and not just fans of “America’s Team,” we can only hope that there are very few owners that agree with him.

Revenue sharing in the NFL came about as the result of NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle convincing teams that for the good of the league, teams that made more had to share with teams that made less–in large part because of the success that the rival AFL had using a similar system.

While the NFL had already surpassed Major League Baseball in popularity, the parity brought about by revenue sharing (combined with the AFL/NFL merger and the eventual implementation of a salary cap) helped the league go from merely more popular to the truly dominant professional sports league it is today.

I firmly believe that removing the salary cap would hurt the game–removing revenue sharing might destroy it.  If Jones (or you) has any interest in a little history lesson on how football became what it is today, I suggest that he (or you) pick up a copy of America’s Game: The Epic Story of How Pro Football Captured a Nation.

It’s a book we’ve recently read, and which we’re using as a starting point to a new category of articles we’re planning on posting here on Zoneblitz.com that will look at the history of the NFL (and AFL).  The stories will range from short tidbits we find interesting or amusing to longer looks at events that have helped shape the league, and how they continue to impact it today.

So if you’re interested in the history of the NFL (and AFL), we hope you’ll subscribe to our RSS feed, follow us on Twitter, or just continue to come back to the site–and give us your thoughts as well.