Look at the worst quarterbacks in Super Bowl history, and Rex Grossman has to be somewhere near the top.

Chicago had to win despite Grossman during the regular season, and somehow won a pair of playoff games to get to the Super Bowl. But the Bears couldn't overcome Rex's grossness in the rain down in Miami, losing 29-17 to the Indianapolis Colts after their quarterback threw passes up for grabs, fumbled and stumbled all over the soggy field.

Call Rex the Wreck the worst QB in the 41 years of the Super Bowl, and you probably won't get much of an argument, particularly from Bears fans.

But if that's the case, what does it say about Brian Griese?

No matter how many bad decisions Grossman made, no matter how many times he got confused about which colored jerseys to throw to, Bears coach Lovie Smith never got the urge to replace him with Griese.

Does that make Griese the worst backup QB in Super Bowl history? That one's hard to pin down since backups do little more than listen in on conversations with the coach and stand around wearing hats instead of helmets.

But the way the Bears shied away from Griese, no matter how bad Grossman played, no matter how many times he floated passes up for grabs, you've got to figure he's in line for the crown.

Part of it is his demeanor.

Since his days at Michigan, Griese has come across as a little snooty, like he's better than everyone else because his father is a Hall of Famer (former Miami Dolphins quarterback Bob Griese).

Fans in Denver despised him because of his attitude — and the fact that he was replacing a legend, John Elway — and often booed him during home games. Many of his teammates weren't too found of him, either, some of them bad-mouthing him behind his back.

Even Griese's dog didn't seem to like him, tripping him up on the stairs and spraining his left ankle in 2002. When man's best friend has a problem with you, it might be time for a little self-reflection.

But more than his nose-in-the-air disposition, it was Griese's ball-in-the-air decision-making that kept him looking over Grossman's shoulder.

In nine NFL seasons, Griese has thrown for 104 touchdowns and 80 interceptions, numbers skewed by his one good season in 2000, when he somehow had 19 TDs and four picks. He was released by the Broncos in 2003 so they wouldn't have to pay him a roster bonus and he did little to get Dolphins fans excited about the Griese name again in his one season in Miami.

Griese did have a bit of a resurgence in 2005, going 5-1 as a starter for Tampa Bay, but suffered a season-ending knee injury and was released after the season in another roster bonus-inspired move. Basically, money has been more important than Griese throughout his career.

Which gets us back to this season.

Grossman was utterly gross at times, posting quarterback ratings under 2.0 twice in the final half of the season, including that doughnut against Green Bay, when he said he wasn't prepared for the game.

Then there was the debacle in the Super Bowl. Grossman wasn't the only reason the Bears lost, but he certainly didn't help with his inability to move the team and his ability to find the other team with his passes.

But was that enough to get him replaced by Griese? Not a chance.

No matter how horrible it might be to take the field with one of the worst quarterbacks in Super Bowl history, it still beats putting in one of the worst backups of all-time.

___

PEYTON CELEBRATES

Watching Peyton Manning's subdued reaction Sunday night, you'd think he'd just beaten his two brothers in a street game, not just won the biggest game of his career. Both on the field and later in the postgame news conferences, the most we saw out of Manning was a little fist pump and a smile.

What a nice change of pace. In a world that's full of look-at-me celebrations, it's nice to see someone react with a little dignity instead of gyrating and taunting all over the field.

Hopefully, the New England Patriots were watching, though I'm not sure it'll matter judging by their antics after beating San Diego a few weeks ago.

___

LOOSE BALLS

An Illinois man set a world record by riding a stationary bike for 85 straight hours. He likely followed that by setting another world record by sitting on a bag of ice for 107 hours. ... The dunk contest at the NBA All-Star Game will feature Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, Julius Erving, Kobe Bryant and Vince Carter. Too bad they'll only be the judges and we'll have to watch a bunch of no-names try dunks we don't care about for about the 10th year in a row.

___

John Marshall is asap's sports writer, based in Denver.

Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register.