Tom Brady has won 3 Super Bowls and that will be apart of his legacy when he retires, but right now, people see Brady as the guy who married Giselle Bundchen, has too long of hair, and recently is not very clutch in the postseason. Peyton Manning is on pace to have one of the best statsitical careers of any quarterback, and has one Super Bowl win. But right now, people still have visions of New Orleans Saints' cornerback Tracey Porter running back a Manning interception to seal the Super Bowl for the Saints. The NFL is a 'what have you done for me lately' league therefore legacy is not important until retirement.
If the Steelers win, Ben Roethlisberger will have his third Super Bowl win in six years. That is a great accomplishment, and he will be considered one of the best winners in the NFL. People will force themselves to include Big Ben in their top five quarterbacks lists even when statistically he hasn't done much. But what people forget is the Steelers are an old football team. Many of their guys start to head into to the twilight of their careers in the upcoming seasons. It would not shock me if this will be the last time we see Big Ben on the grandest stage for multiple years as the Steelers quietly rebuild through the draft. Does it diminish his legacy if it happens? Hell no. Win or lose, Big Ben has a bright NFL future.
The legacy issue reaches a bigger deal with Aaron Rodgers. A Packer victory ensures Rodgers a spot in the Top 5 quarterbacks discussion, and people begin to tout how great Rodgers is in the postseason. Fair or not, Rodgers gets put on a brand new pedestal just because of one win at age 27. Another reason some people on the national stage believe he needs to win the Super Bowl is to become as popular as Brett Favre... Child Please. First off, the Favre questions need to stop, let Aaron be Aaron. Second off, why does it matter? People love the guy, he is the most popular athlete in the state of the Wisconsin, hands down. So what if nationally, he isn't on Favre's level yet, he will be. Additionally, if Rodgers were to lose on Sunday, he has a loaded team that could be back next year, or the year after. The Packers are stacked at every position with young talent. Just so Rodgers doesn't turn into Jim Kelly, I will be perfectly fine with it.
The reason why the word legacy is passed around like Charlie Sheen's crack pipe is it's an easy topic. Usually, people choose their sides defending them to the death. There is an old saying 'don't judge a book by its cover.' So then why does the national media judge an NFL player when the book isn't even finished. Let's wait and see what happens with Roethlisberger's and Rodgers' careers before we anoint their legacies.
-Charlie.
