Gil Brandt made sure Cowboys Twitter had something to argue about this week. He took to Twitter to share his thoughts on who were the best quarterbacks in the history of the Dallas Cowboys. For a long time, it's been a controversial topic. After all, Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach won the Super Bowl multiple times, but who played better? If you want to play a wildcard, you can argue that Tony Romo leads the franchise in plenty of passing records. And that's only mentioning three of them.
But Brandt's Top 5 was even more controversial. It was the kind of tweet you need to stare at for a few seconds to process it. And then, hit the reply with your own ranking. Let's take a look at his tweet.
Top 5 QBs in Cowboys history. pic.twitter.com/rK13NAYjNH
— Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) February 19, 2020
Whew. What makes this even more fun is that outrage in social media isn't about one specific player. Let's break it down.
Tony Romo at #5 was a huge surprise. Perhaps the most controversial player in Cowboys history, Romo's place on this list is often behind Aikman and Staubach. He was seen by many as a very talented player who was the face of the franchise for an extended period of time and kept the Cowboys in almost any game despite not having a great roster around him. The Cowboys' passing record book has Romo's name at the top in yards, touchdowns (with an 83 TD lead over Aikman), and ranks third in wins.
Injuries and lack of playoff success earned him many detractors, but to rank him as the fifth-best quarterback in team history seems quite low.
Danny White also took many by surprise. White led the Cowboys to three NFC Championship Games, which I believe might be the biggest argument you can make for ranking him ahead of Romo. He went 62-30 in his career.
Don Meredith's absence didn't go unnoticed. He was the first face of the Dallas Cowboys franchise. Meredith is remembered by his playmaking ability. The first Cowboys winning season was led by none other than Dandy Don. How can you not include the first of the Cowboys legendary quarterbacks?
But nothing was more shocking than Dak Prescott's place at #3. He's one of the top young quarterbacks in the NFL right now. The Cowboys should pay him. He's the future of the franchise. As I write this though, in February 2020, I don't see how you rank him as the third-best in Cowboys history.
If Prescott retired tomorrow, what would he even mean in team history? He wouldn't be remembered as Meredith, White, or Romo. I can't help but wonder what specifically is Brandt ranking here. Is it talent? Greatness? Or simply, “best”?
Is he taking into consideration Dak's future? I bet that the list will make a bit more sense in the future. Prescott has the potential to be someone special. But right now, I don't see how you rank him over any of these guys.
For what it's worth, here's how I'd rank them.
- Roger Staubach
- Troy Aikman
- Tony Romo
- Don Meredith
- Danny White
Now granted, Brandt is a great one who didn't make his ranking without a justification. I can't wait to hear him back his thoughts up soon. I hope he does.
