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It must be one of the most unenviable positions on the football field: the backup quarterback. It involves none of the upsides of being a starting quarterback. As a backup quarterback, you don't get as many reps as a starter.
Backup quarterbacks are often thrown into games in the most difficult moments, when the starter has gone down injured or the team is trailing badly, for example.
But even under trying circumstances, backup quarterbacks have come in and defied all the odds. There have been those who have been incredibly consistent as backup quarterbacks, but we are not interested in delving into detailed statistics.
What we are instead looking for are those backup quarterbacks who have had the most impact coming in as a starter. We are ignoring players like Kurt Warner, who began as backups, but took over as starter before the regular season, or Tom Brady who, though he began as a backup quarterback, has established himself as the greatest starting quarterback of all time.
We have put in some of our best picks on this list. Let us know if you agree.
The top backup quarterbacks of all time
#5 - Trent Dilfer
When Trent Dilfer signed with the Baltimore Ravens in 2000, he was the backup quarterback to Tony Banks. But after the Ravens went without an offensive touchdown for four weeks, the losses being limited to just two consecutive because of a dominant defense, Trent Dilfer was brought in.
He did not make an immediate impact as they lost their first game with him as their starting quarterback. But that proved to be their last loss as they won all their remaining games to finish 12-4 and make it to the playoffs as a wild-card entry.
They won all three of their playoff games and then defeated the New York Giants 34-7 to win the Super Bowl.
Even though the defense is credited with the win, and rightly so, Trent Dilfer was a superb game manager and stabilized the team. But it was not enough to earn him a new contract and he was released after the season.
#4- Nick Foles
It is fair to say that Nick Foles was not the most sought after quarterback in 2017, when he returned to the Philadelphia Eagles for his second stint. But an injury to Carson Wentz allowed him to take over during the season and the rest is history.
He came in during Week 14 and led the team to victory over the Los Angeles Rams, which sealed the divisional title. He won games over the next two weeks as well, before playing a limited role in their loss to the Dallas Cowboys in the final game of the regular season.
In the playoffs, he led the Eagles to victory in the divisional round and the NFC Championship game against the Atlanta Falcons and the Minnesota Vikings, respectively. He was then named Super Bowl MVP as the Eagles beat the Patriots 41-33 to clinch the Lombardi Trophy for the first time in franchise history.
Backup quarterbacks who outshone the starters
#3 - Earl Morrall
In the annals of backup quarterbacks, few have made an impression as Earl Morrall did with the Baltimore Colts and the Miami Dolphins.
Earl Morrall was the backup quarterback to Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas. In 1968, he played the entire season after Unitas was injured and lost after only one game during the regular season.
He threw for 2,909 yards and 26 touchdowns, numbers that were enough to make him the NFL MVP for that season. They reached the Super Bowl that year but were defeated in an upset by the New York Jets.
He eventually reverted to being the backup quarterback but would get his redemption a couple of years later in Super Bowl V. Trailing 13-6 against the Dallas Cowboys, Unitas exited the game with a rib injury.
Earl Morrall took over and led the Colts to a 16-13 victory.
He was also an important part of the Miami Dolphins' legendary 1972 team as a backup quarterback to Bob Griese. He replaced Bob Griese against the San Diego Chargers in October and led the team to an undefeated regular NFL season.
He remained the starter until the AFC Championship game, during which Bob Griese took over midway. He remained the backup quarterback in Super Bowl VII as the Miami Dolphins became the first, and so far only team, to win all of their NFL games in a season.
#2 - Doug Williams
The Washington franchise has always been notorious for its racially backdated views, becoming the last NFL franchise to integrate, insisting on carrying a racial epithet as their franchise name and lately tolerating a racist work culture as evidenced from the leaked Jon Gruden emails to their former president Bruce Allen as part of the NFL's investigation into their workplace culture.
It almost seemed a quirk of logic that they were somehow responsible for one of the most seminal moments in league history.
But Doug Williams was not just a backup quarterback for them. He turned out to be a Super Bowl winning quarterback.
More importantly, he became the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl, shattering the notion once and for all that black athletes were not cerebral enough to play the quarterback position.
Doug Williams was the backup quarterback to Jay Schroeder and in 1987 he substituted for him in three games and started another couple of games. Due to his superior passer rating of 94, he got the nod as the starter for the playoffs.
He led the Washington franchise to victory in the postseason, defeating the John Elway-led Denver Broncos 42-10 in Super Bowl XXII. He threw for 340 yards and four touchdown passes and became the first black quarterback to be named Super Bowl MVP.
#1 - Jim Plunkett
The gold standard for backup quarterbacks remains Jim Plunkett. He joined the Oakland Raiders in 1978 and with them he made history.
He was the backup quarterback to Dan Pastorini in the 1980 season and came in the fifth week to substitute for him after an injury. He became the starter the following week and led the Raiders to nine victories in eleven games to clinch a wild-card berth.
They then became the first team to win the Super Bowl as a wild-card, winning the Super Bowl XV 27-10 against the Philadelphia Eagles. Jim Plunkett became the first Latino quarterback, and indeed the first minority quarterback, to win the Super Bowl MVP award.
He reprised the role of a backup quarterback in the subsequent seasons, but in 1983 after starter Marc Wilson was injured, he again took the reins and guided the Los Angeles Raiders to victory in Super Bowl XVIII.
From his two Super Bowl wins and his legacy as the first minority quarterback to win the Super Bowl and its MVP award, he remains arguably the greatest backup quarterback ever to have ever played.
