It struck me today, while in conversation in our New Orleans Second Line war room, that I don't believe there is a very obvious, consensus greatest of all time in this league. As someone who can claim to be the GOAT over in the PBE, I was a bit surprised by this at first, since I assumed the same would be true everywhere. I can't speak for the SHL but yeah, it is an interesting thought anyway. I guess PBE makes it easier cause hitters are all sort of on the same line, whereas here every position is very different.
In football, typically whenever we talk about GOATs, people really talk about the Quarterbacks. Quarterbacks are just most important for football and so it makes sense that the greatest QB is also the GOAT in general. I guess the NFL has several options as well, though as more seasons go by, Tom Brady seems like the more and more obvious choice because of the Super Bowls. Is that the best way to do it though? I also know some people in the NFL think Jerry Rice (Wide Receiver) or even Lawrence Taylor (OLB) have a good claim for being the GOAT.
I guess I was curious to see the arguments in this league and wondered who people considered the GOAT. Feel free to give your own thoughts in the comments. In the meantime, let's look at some candidates:
Quarterbacks:
Mike Boss:
At first glance, Mike Boss seems like the most obvious choice for the greatest of all time moniker. Leading the league history in passing yards (42278), touchdowns (292) and completion percentage (60.2) he has an obvious claim to be the best quarterback of all time by those measures. He lead his team to three championships and won three Most Valuable Player trophies himself, as well as winning five Quarterbacks of the year awards. He also made 8 pro-bowls. Boss really has the most obvious claim among quarterbacks and may be one of the most obvious choices for the GOAT position in general. He dominated and has the longevity records as well as the MVP awards and the titles. Three titles is among the lead league and he is tied for most MVP awards.
Franklin Armstrong:
For the younger crowd in here, Armstrong may seem like the GOAT to them. Armstrong has a similar pedigree to Boss in some regards. Like Boss, he won three MVPs and ties him for most ever. He also lead his team to three championships. Armstrong is still going so he theoretically has the chance to improve his stats further, though currently he certainly lacks the longevity that Boss has. In career stats, Armstrong definitely lags behind, due to less seasons played for now. I personally doubt he can really get to Boss in this regard, but if he wins another MVP, that would certainly push his case even higher up.
Running Backs:
Marquise Brown:
Brown seems like a great choice for the GOAT Running Back at the very least. He has the most yards (12587), third most touchdowns (104) and he won a Most Valuable Player award. He won Running Back of the Year four times. Brown has a really good resume and while he is probably the best RB ever, I just don't think he is in the same category as the first two Quarterbacks
Owen Taylor:
Taylor has a similar resume to Brown, but a bit inverted. Taylor is third in yards (11597) but first in touchdowns (123). He did not win an MVP but instead won a championship, as well as six Running Back of the Year awards.
Wide Receivers:
Trey Willie:
While not quite Jerry Rice, Trey Willie is the undisputed WR GOAT in my eyes. Willie has the lead on all meaningful wide receiver categories including 1st in catches (880, though 3rd overall behind two Tight Ends), Yards (14421) and touchdowns (118). His 9 Pro Bowl selections are also among the most in league history and most among Wide Receivers.
Bradley Westfield:
While Willie is the obvious choice for this position, Westfield is the obvious #2 in every regard. Westfield is second in all the categories that Willie leads and is also tied with him in Pro Bowl selections.
Tight Ends:
Paul DiMirio:
Another quite obvious choice as the number one for a position, DiMirio was long the most consistent and dominant Tight End in the game. DiMirio holds the record for most catches in league history with 1110 while being 5th in yards and 9th in touchdowns. DiMirio ends up in 2nd place in history for most Pro Bowl appearances for any positions with 12.
Verso L'Alto:
L'Alto was basically DiMirio number 2, and quite as dominant as the first one. His 10 Pro Bowl appearances are almost as high as DiMirio. Among Tight Ends, L'Alto has essentially the 2nd most of everything, most importantly 2nd most catches in history.
Defense:
Dermot Lavelle:
I think among everybody, Dermot Lavelle may have the best claim of being the GOAT compared to Mike Boss. Lavelle was a dominant defender who also did great on special teams. Lavelle has a huge list of accomplishments including most interceptions (57), most interception yards (1266), most defensive touchdowns (10), most punt return yards (3452), most punt return touchdowns (10), most kick return yards (9093), most kick return touchdowns (5) and most Pro Bowl selections (13). His biggest lack of claim is the fact he never won MVP, compared to Boss's three MVP titles.
Jayce Tuck:
For a lot of younger players, Jayce Tuck may not be the most familiar name anymore. Tuck's career had a lot of downs and his career numbers look almost pedestrian compared to some of his fellow players. While he has the most tackles for loss (113), his 106 sacks are only 4th all time anymore. His backstory is obviously notorious, to the point where I believe he is not even in the hall of fame. Nonetheless, it is crucial to include one of the most dominant defenders of his time on this list. To understate his accomplishments would be silly. Tuck had one of the most dominant two year runs of any player in the league, winning back to back MVPs and leading Arizona to early season dominance. In this two year span, he had 55 of his 106 career sacks, which is just mind-boggling.
Danny Grithead:
Grithead is a newer addition to the list but he has had a dominant career. 2nd all time in tackles (1268), 3rd in fumbles forced (16), 4th in defensive touchdowns (7), he has shown his dominance over a long time. He is also one of only three defenders (Tuck and O'Sullivan the other two) to ever win an MVP award.
Julian O'Sullivan:
I guess I should mention myself, even if I don't think I am quite in the same category as the other two, but given the MVP comment I guess it makes sense. My main claim to fame is tackles, where I am 2nd all time and I won the MVP award. Additionally, I had 5 championships, tied for most in the league.
Conclusion:
I think right now, the most obvious choice is still Mike Boss, unless Armstrong manages to break some of the longevity records or at least comes close at some point. On defense, my pick is Dermot Lavelle, who honestly has his own claim to be the GOAT in general. The three MVP awards are pushing me towards Boss and the love for Quarterbacks in football, but Dermot has a huge claim himself.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments, hit the like button and subscribe. All that stuff
In football, typically whenever we talk about GOATs, people really talk about the Quarterbacks. Quarterbacks are just most important for football and so it makes sense that the greatest QB is also the GOAT in general. I guess the NFL has several options as well, though as more seasons go by, Tom Brady seems like the more and more obvious choice because of the Super Bowls. Is that the best way to do it though? I also know some people in the NFL think Jerry Rice (Wide Receiver) or even Lawrence Taylor (OLB) have a good claim for being the GOAT.
I guess I was curious to see the arguments in this league and wondered who people considered the GOAT. Feel free to give your own thoughts in the comments. In the meantime, let's look at some candidates:
Quarterbacks:
Mike Boss:
At first glance, Mike Boss seems like the most obvious choice for the greatest of all time moniker. Leading the league history in passing yards (42278), touchdowns (292) and completion percentage (60.2) he has an obvious claim to be the best quarterback of all time by those measures. He lead his team to three championships and won three Most Valuable Player trophies himself, as well as winning five Quarterbacks of the year awards. He also made 8 pro-bowls. Boss really has the most obvious claim among quarterbacks and may be one of the most obvious choices for the GOAT position in general. He dominated and has the longevity records as well as the MVP awards and the titles. Three titles is among the lead league and he is tied for most MVP awards.
Franklin Armstrong:
For the younger crowd in here, Armstrong may seem like the GOAT to them. Armstrong has a similar pedigree to Boss in some regards. Like Boss, he won three MVPs and ties him for most ever. He also lead his team to three championships. Armstrong is still going so he theoretically has the chance to improve his stats further, though currently he certainly lacks the longevity that Boss has. In career stats, Armstrong definitely lags behind, due to less seasons played for now. I personally doubt he can really get to Boss in this regard, but if he wins another MVP, that would certainly push his case even higher up.
Running Backs:
Marquise Brown:
Brown seems like a great choice for the GOAT Running Back at the very least. He has the most yards (12587), third most touchdowns (104) and he won a Most Valuable Player award. He won Running Back of the Year four times. Brown has a really good resume and while he is probably the best RB ever, I just don't think he is in the same category as the first two Quarterbacks
Owen Taylor:
Taylor has a similar resume to Brown, but a bit inverted. Taylor is third in yards (11597) but first in touchdowns (123). He did not win an MVP but instead won a championship, as well as six Running Back of the Year awards.
Wide Receivers:
Trey Willie:
While not quite Jerry Rice, Trey Willie is the undisputed WR GOAT in my eyes. Willie has the lead on all meaningful wide receiver categories including 1st in catches (880, though 3rd overall behind two Tight Ends), Yards (14421) and touchdowns (118). His 9 Pro Bowl selections are also among the most in league history and most among Wide Receivers.
Bradley Westfield:
While Willie is the obvious choice for this position, Westfield is the obvious #2 in every regard. Westfield is second in all the categories that Willie leads and is also tied with him in Pro Bowl selections.
Tight Ends:
Paul DiMirio:
Another quite obvious choice as the number one for a position, DiMirio was long the most consistent and dominant Tight End in the game. DiMirio holds the record for most catches in league history with 1110 while being 5th in yards and 9th in touchdowns. DiMirio ends up in 2nd place in history for most Pro Bowl appearances for any positions with 12.
Verso L'Alto:
L'Alto was basically DiMirio number 2, and quite as dominant as the first one. His 10 Pro Bowl appearances are almost as high as DiMirio. Among Tight Ends, L'Alto has essentially the 2nd most of everything, most importantly 2nd most catches in history.
Defense:
Dermot Lavelle:
I think among everybody, Dermot Lavelle may have the best claim of being the GOAT compared to Mike Boss. Lavelle was a dominant defender who also did great on special teams. Lavelle has a huge list of accomplishments including most interceptions (57), most interception yards (1266), most defensive touchdowns (10), most punt return yards (3452), most punt return touchdowns (10), most kick return yards (9093), most kick return touchdowns (5) and most Pro Bowl selections (13). His biggest lack of claim is the fact he never won MVP, compared to Boss's three MVP titles.
Jayce Tuck:
For a lot of younger players, Jayce Tuck may not be the most familiar name anymore. Tuck's career had a lot of downs and his career numbers look almost pedestrian compared to some of his fellow players. While he has the most tackles for loss (113), his 106 sacks are only 4th all time anymore. His backstory is obviously notorious, to the point where I believe he is not even in the hall of fame. Nonetheless, it is crucial to include one of the most dominant defenders of his time on this list. To understate his accomplishments would be silly. Tuck had one of the most dominant two year runs of any player in the league, winning back to back MVPs and leading Arizona to early season dominance. In this two year span, he had 55 of his 106 career sacks, which is just mind-boggling.
Danny Grithead:
Grithead is a newer addition to the list but he has had a dominant career. 2nd all time in tackles (1268), 3rd in fumbles forced (16), 4th in defensive touchdowns (7), he has shown his dominance over a long time. He is also one of only three defenders (Tuck and O'Sullivan the other two) to ever win an MVP award.
Julian O'Sullivan:
I guess I should mention myself, even if I don't think I am quite in the same category as the other two, but given the MVP comment I guess it makes sense. My main claim to fame is tackles, where I am 2nd all time and I won the MVP award. Additionally, I had 5 championships, tied for most in the league.
Conclusion:
I think right now, the most obvious choice is still Mike Boss, unless Armstrong manages to break some of the longevity records or at least comes close at some point. On defense, my pick is Dermot Lavelle, who honestly has his own claim to be the GOAT in general. The three MVP awards are pushing me towards Boss and the love for Quarterbacks in football, but Dermot has a huge claim himself.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments, hit the like button and subscribe. All that stuff