Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #30 - Daryle Lamonica

Daryle Lamonica

Daryle Lamonica was known as "the Mad Bomber" due to his affinity for throwing the long ball, and though he was only a starter for 6 seasons, he has one of the best winning percentages of all time and two AFL MVP awards to show for it.

Daryle Lamonica was drafted in the 24th round of the AFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills in 1963, and he spent 4 years in Buffalo, starting a total of 4 games for the Bills. After winning two titles as a backup, he was traded to the Raiders, which is where he would make a name for himself, though he never did get to hoist the trophy as a starter.

In his first season as a starter, he led the AFL with 30 touchdowns while throwing for 3228 yards, and Oakland finished the season at 13-1, far ahead of anyone else in the league, which helped earn him the league MVP. They destroyed Houston 40-7 to win the AFL title, needing only 111 yards and 2 TD's from Lamonica. They then faced Green Bay in Super Bowl II, and while his numbers were pretty much even with Bart Starr's, it wasn't enough for the Raiders to pull off the upset.

In his second season as a starter, his production was almost equal to his first season, and Oakland's 12-2 record earned them a return ticket to the playoffs, where they destroyed Kansas City in a tiebreaker game behind Lamonica's 347 yards and 5 touchdowns. In the AFL title game, they were unable to overcome the New York Jets, even while Lamonica was throwing 401 yards and a touchdown without an interception.

In 1969, he led the AFL in nearly every category, including completions, attempts, yardage, touchdowns, and interceptions, and Oakland again finished with the best record in the league at 12-1-1. He demolished Houston in the wild card game behind 276 yards and 6 touchdowns, but came up short again in the AFL title game, dropping this one to Kansas City 17-7.

The AFL and NFL merged in 1970, but it didn't slow him down. He did not put up the yardage that he had over the past few years, but Oakland won their division for the fourth year in a row, and he again led them to the AFC title game, but they again fell one game short of the Super Bowl. It would be the last time he would get that close to winning a title.

Lamonica was only a starter in the NFL or AFL for 6 full seasons, but his overall record is incredible, at 66-16-6, a winning percentage of 78.4%, #2 in history, behind only Otto Graham. He made it to the AFC or AFL title game in each of his first 4 seasons as a starter, and also made it to the Super Bowl in his first ever season as a starter, and never played poorly in the playoffs, even when his team lost. Taking all of that into account, Lamonica definitely belongs on this list of the best QBs of all time.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #18 - Daryle Lamonica

Daryle Lamonica

Daryle Lamonica was drafted in the 24th round of the AFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills in 1963, and he spent 4 years in Buffalo, starting a total of 4 games for the Bills. After winning two titles as a backup, he was traded to the Raiders, which is where he would make a name for himself, though he never did get to hoist the trophy as a starter.

In his first season as a starter, he led the AFL with 30 touchdowns while throwing for 3228 yards, and Oakland finished the season at 13-1, far ahead of anyone else in the league, which helped earn him the league MVP. They destroyed Houston 40-7 to win the AFL title, needing only 111 yards and 2 TD's from Lamonica. They then faced Green Bay in Super Bowl II, and while his numbers were pretty much even with Bart Starr's, it wasn't enough for the Raiders to pull off the upset.

In his second season as a starter, his production was almost equal to his first season, and Oakland's 12-2 record earned them a return ticket to the playoffs, where they destroyed Kansas City in a tiebreaker game behind Lamonica's 347 yards and 5 touchdowns. In the AFL title game, they were unable to overcome the New York Jets, even while Lamonica was throwing 401 yards and a touchdown without an interception.

In 1969, he led the AFL in nearly every category, including completions, attempts, yardage, touchdowns, and interceptions, and Oakland again finished with the best record in the league at 12-1-1. He demolished Houston in the wild card game behind 276 yards and 6 touchdowns, but came up short again in the AFL title game, dropping this one to Kansas City 17-7.

The AFL and NFL merged in 1970, but it didn't slow him down. He did not put up the yardage that he had over the past few years, but Oakland won their division for the fourth year in a row, and he again led them to the AFC title game, but they again fell one game short of the Super Bowl. It would be the last time he would get that close to winning a title.

Lamonica was only a starter in the NFL or AFL for 6 full seasons, but his overall record is incredible, at 66-16-6, a winning percentage of 78.4%, #2 in history, behind only Otto Graham. He made it to the AFC or AFL title game in each of his first 4 seasons as a starter, and also made it to the Super Bowl in his first ever season as a starter, and never played poorly in the playoffs, even when his team lost. That is why he is ranked so high on this list, even ahead of several players who have won titles.

Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #20 - Ken Stabler

Ken Stabler

Ken Stabler was drafted in the second round in 1968, but only started 2 games in his first 5 seasons, as he was stuck behind Daryle Lamonica on the depth chart. He would go on to be one of the best quarterbacks of the 1970's once he was given a chance.

In his first season at the helm, he led the league in completion percentage, but threw for less than 2000 yards total. His Raiders won the AFC West, and he was able to lead them to a playoff win before losing in the AFC championship game, not bad for a first-year starter.

The following season he was much better, leading the league in touchdown passes with 26, and the Raiders finished at 12-2, best in the entire league. For his great season, Stabler was named the league's MVP, but once again was unable to advance to the Super Bowl, losing in the AFC title game again.

He struggled with his control in 1975, doubling his previous career high for interceptions, but rebounded nicely in 1976, when he set new career highs in touchdowns and completion percentage while leading the league in both categories. He also led Oakland to their fourth straight AFC Championship Game, but this time they were finally able to win, enabling Stabler to reach his first Super Bowl. In that game, he only threw for 180 yards and 1 touchdowns, but it was enough for Oakland to win the title, and it capped off a mistake-free postseason from Stabler.

His production dropped off a bit the next year, but not enough to prevent him from leading the Raiders to their 5th consecutive conference title game, an achievement very few have ever achieved. His career wound down pretty quickly after that, with 5 more years as a less effective starter before his 1983 retirement.

Stabler is one of the best retired quarterbacks that has yet to be honored as a member of the Hall of Fame, although he has been a finalist 3 times. Though he only won the Super Bowl once in his career, he kept his team in contention for 5 years, matching the length of Bart Starr's peak while going through more playoff games and tougher competition to get there.