6. Dan Marino
Let there be no doubt, Daniel Constantine Marino, Jr. remains the one of the best “pure passers in NFL history” (if you do question that claim, do a web search on the subject). Marino’s only drawback was his failure to deliver titles like Unitas, Brady, Manning etc. He’s also criticized for reaching but one Super Bowl (XIX), in which he did not play well and was clearly out dueled by a more precise Joe Montana. But one game–win or lose–does not a career make.
When Marino burst onto the scene in 1983–somewhat under the radar due to being drafted only 27th overall by Miami in that iconic NFL Draft that included the likes of John Elway–he immediately turned the formerly turgid, run-heavy Dolphins into an aerial attack the likes of which pro football had never seen. Aided by the “Marks Brothers,” (outstanding wideout pair Mark “Super” Duper and Mark Clayton), Marino helped transform the NFL into the pass-first league we currently experience.