Every year, someone new enters the club of quarterbacks who have won a Super Bowl. Well, except for the years that someone who has already won a Super Bowl wins another one. Of course, while there are some legendary quarterbacks in that club, there are also some surprising names. Frankly, there are quarterbacks we look back on and can’t believe they actually won a Super Bowl. We’re not trying to be mean, nor are we saying these are the worst quarterbacks to win a Super Bowl. But these are the five quarterbacks we can’t believe actually won “the big game.”
Doug Williams
The last thing we want to do is take away Williams’ claim to fame as the first African American quarterback to start a Super Bowl. However, he lost both regular-season games he started and then lucked into the starting job in the playoffs.
Williams then had an amazing second quarter in the Super Bowl, throwing four touchdowns with Washington scoring 35 points in those 15 minutes. Surely, he deserves credit for the part he played, but there’s nothing else about his career that screams Super Bowl-winning quarterback.
Joe Flacco
If we’re being honest, it feels a little mean to put Flacco on this list because he had a solid career in Baltimore. On the other hand, he was never a Pro Bowler and never the type of quarterback who looked like a future Super Bowl winner.
He and the Ravens also lucked out a little during the playoffs the year they won when a Hail Mary saved them against the Broncos. Otherwise, he never would have won the Super Bowl and we wouldn’t be surprised that Flacco actually did it.
Jeff Hostetler
If not for an injury to Phil Simms, Hostetler would never have been a Super Bowl-winning quarterback. Technically, if Scott Norwood hadn’t missed that famous field goal, Hostetler never would have made this list either and probably would have been long since forgotten. He’s the type of quarterback who should have been a career backup, albeit a good one.
Norwood’s missed field goal aside, it’s still surprising that any team managed to win a Super Bowl with Hostetler playing quarterback.
Trent Dilfer
While Dilfer has turned into a smart analyst, it’s not a stretch to call him the worst quarterback to win a Super Bowl. There are a lot of reasons why he struggled to hold onto a starting job, even after winning the Super Bowl with help from a terrific defense.
For his career, Dilfer had more interceptions than touchdown passes and had a passer rating of 70.2. If he hadn’t had such an amazing supporting cast around him, Dilfer never would have been able to lead a team anywhere close to the Super Bowl, much less win one.
Nick Foles
Foles will forever be one of the greatest anomalies in NFL history. He’s never had much success as a full-time starter but has always been a dependable backup. To his credit, Foles was able to rise to the occasion when Carson Wentz, who was having an MVP-caliber season, got hurt late in the year.
If Wentz doesn’t get hurt, the Eagles may have gone on to win the Super Bowl anyway. But Foles played his part and earned MVP honors in Philadelphia’s win over the Patriots. But looking back, it still makes no sense that Foles won a Super Bowl.